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Spraying Crops 




Strayed. Unsprayed. 

Plate I.— Pear Leaf-blight Experiment. 



/Q 



SPRAYING CROPS 



Why, When, and How 



EY 



CLARENCE M. WEED, D. Sc. 

Professor of Zoology a?id Botany, New Hampshire College of Agriculture 
and the Mechanic Arts 



ILLUSTRATED 



Second (Revised) Edition 



New York 

The Orange Judd Company 

1894 



65933 



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L? 



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5K 777£ 5^Af£ AUTHOR 



INSECTS AND INSECTICIDES 

A Practical Manual Concerning Noxious Insects 
and the Methods of Preventing their Injuries. Illus- 
trated. 

FUNGI AND FUNGICIDES 

A Practical Manual Concerning the Fungous Dis- 
eases of Cultivated Plants and the Methods of Pre- 
venting their Ravages. Illustrated. 



By tra,Lici<3j (4ut 

F*t. Office Lite, 

4»rtil9U 



Copyright, 1891 

by 

Clarence M. Weed 



Printed by 

Republican Press Association 

Concord, N. H. 




P REF1 ce 



This little manual has been prepared for the purpose of 
aiding owners of spraying- machines to use them to best 
advantage. The practical results of the most recent investi- 
gations and experiments have been embodied in it ; and 
technical terms, so far as possible, have been excluded. 

The development of the practice of spraying crops fur- 
nishes a striking illustration of the practical results agricul- 
ture may derive from scientific investigation and accurate 
experimentation. Little more than a decade has passed 
since Professor A. J. Cook, then of the Michigan Agricul- 
tural College, began his experiments in spraying apples to 
prevent the injuries caused by the Codling Moth — experi- 
ments which first proved to the horticultural public that the 
remedy w r as safe and sure — and to his enthusiastic advocacy 
of the process American fruit-growers are largely indebted 
for the introduction of spraying machinery. The success 
which followed spraying for the Codling Moth naturally led 
to experiments in spraying for other insects, and later for 
fungous diseases ; our early knowledge of remedies for the 
latter being largely due to the efforts of Messrs. Scribner and 
Galloway, of the United States Department of Agriculture. 
The establishment of the state experiment stations has 



6 Preface 

greatly aided the acquisition and diffusion of information 
upon the whole subject. 

The original sources of the illustrations on the following 
pages which are not original with the author, are indicated in 
the list below: After Riley, Plates II., IV., V., and figures 
1,3, 4, ii, 12, 18, 20, 23-26, 28-30, 34-38,40; after 
Bailey, figures 9, 10, 15; after Slingerland, figures 17, 21, 
22; after Popenoe, figure 14; after Galloway, Plate I. and 
figures 7, 27 ; after Chester, figure 8 ; after Farlow, figure 5 ; 
after Garman, Plate III. and figure 19; after Jones, figure 
33 ; after Osborn, figure 39 ; after Saunders, figures 16, 32 ; 
after Field Force Pump Co., figure 2. CM. W. 

Nezv Hampshire College of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts. 
Durham, January, 1894. 



CONTENTS 



Page 
Introduction 9 

PART I 

Spraying the Larger Fruits 

Apple 53 Pear 68 

Plum 62 Cherry 72 

Peach 66 Orange 74 

PART II 

Spraying Small Fruits and Nursery Stock 

Strawberry 79 Grape 89 

Currant and Gooseberry. ... 84 Raspberry 93 

Nursery Stock 95 

PART III 

Spraying Shade-Trees, Ornamental Plants, and 
Flowers 

Shade-Trees 103 Rose 109 

Flowers no 

PART IV 

Spraying Vegetables, Field-Crops and Domestic 
Animals 

Potato 114 Grain Crops 121 

Cabbage 1 18 Domestic Animals 125 



It is certain that spraying for insects and fungous troubles has 
come to be a necessary labor. — L. H. Bailey. 

Spray ! Spray ! Spray I Spray for insects and for fungous 
diseases. This is one of the secrets of successful fruit-growing. — 
Delaware Farm and Home. 

I believe in spraying, for I have tried and proven it. In many 
portions of our country to-day it is just as much a necessity as is 
under draining, or fertilizing, or killing potato-bugs. — Mortimer 
Whitehead. 

The most important accession to recent horticultural practice is the 
spraying of fruit-trees with arsenical poisons for the destruction of 
various insects. — American Cultivator. 

The spraying of trees with arsenites is no longer an experiment, 
but takes its recognized place in the regular routine work of the 
fruit-farm. — Orchard and Garden. 

Out of thirty -six tons of grapes last season I did not lose five 
pounds by rot, but I shall spray, rot or no rot. Spraying adds 
greatly to the health of the vines, and consequently to the size and 
beauty of the fruit. — John Burroughs. 



SPRAYING CROPS 



INTRODUCTION 



f~\ ROWING plants are liable to injury from two 
\JT classes of organisms, — namely, noxious insects 
and parasitic fungi. Although these tiny foes 
are often considered too insignificant to merit serious 
attention, they annually destroy about $500,000,000 
worth of crops in the United States. By an intelligent 
use of the spraying-machine — a simple apparatus by 
which certain substances that destroy insect and fun- 
gus life may be distributed over the surfaces of plants 
— a large proportion of this loss can be prevented at 
comparatively slight expense. The object of this little 
manual is to indicate why, when, and how to spray, to 
get the best results. 

The philosophy of spraying will be better under- 
stood if one has a general knowledge of the habits 
and methods of development of the insect and fun- 
gous pests against which the spraying-machine is used. 
Nearly all of these organisms are weaker and easier to 
destroy at some one period of their existence than at 
any other ; consequently, a knowledge of their habits 



IO 



Spraying Crops 



and history is often necessary to success. In the fol- 
lowing introductory pages I have attempted briefly to 
indicate some of the more important general facts con- 
cerning their development. 

Spraying Against Insects 

The insect against which the spraying-machine has 
been most generally used in the northern United 
States is the Codling Moth or Apple Worm — the 
little white worm that one too often finds near the core 
of the dessert ap- 
ple. The parent 
of this little pest 
is a small choco- 
late-colored moth 
(represented at f 



-and g, Fig. i), 
which appears in 
spring, and de- 
posits eggs in the 
calyx ends of the 
young apples, 
from the time they 
are as large as 
peas, until they 
attain the size of 
small hickory nuts. These eggs are placed on the 
outside of the fruit, and each soon hatches into a little 
worm which nibbles at the skin, finally biting through, 
and eating its way toward the core. Once inside it 




Fig. i. Codling Moth: a, injured apple; b, 
place where egg is laid ; e, iarva ; d, pupa ; 
z, cocoon ; g,f, moth ; /z, head of larva 



Spraying Against Insects 



1 1 



continues feeding as the apple develops, constantly 
increasing in size, until, at the end of three or four 
weeks it is about three-fouths of an inch long, and ap- 
pears as represented at e. It has now finished its cat- 
erpillar growth, and leaving the apple it finds some 
crevice in the rough bark, where it spins a slight co- 
coon in which it changes to the pupa or chrysalis state. 
A fortnight later it emerges from the cocoon as a full- 
fledged moth, like the one which laid the original egg. 
Thus the curious life-cycle is completed. There are 
two broods of the worms each season. 

By means of the spraying-machine the fruit-grower 
is able to place in the calyx ends of the young apples 
a few particles of poison, so that when the newly- 
hatched worm nibbles at the skin, the chances are that 
it will eat one of these particles, and thus cut short at 
the outset its own career. To do this the fruit-grower 
usually mixes a 
quarter of a 
pound of Lon- 
don purple or 
Paris green 
with a barrel of 
water, and then, 
having the bar- 
rel in a wagon, 
he drives along the rows of apple trees just after the 
blossoms have fallen off, and spi-ays them. (Fig. 2.) 
The little particles of poison are thus distributed over 
the tree in a fine mist, and when the water in which 




Fig. 2. Spraying an Orchard. 



12 



Spraying Crops 



they are suspended evaporates, they are left high and 
dry upon the leaves and fruit, where they remain for 
several weeks a menace to insect enemies, until the 
combined action of rain and dew, wind and sunshine, 
dissipates their poisonous properties. The first brood 
of worms being thus destroyed, there is no necessity, 
usually, to spray for the second brood ; because, their 
would-be parents having died in infancy, the worms of 
the second brood do not appear upon the scene. 

Another insect against which the spraying-machine 
is often used is the Plum Curculio. This pest has 
been in years past the worst enemy of the plum-grower, 
and is the cause of the 
worminess and prema- 
ture dropping of the 
fruit, with which so many 
owners of plum trees are 
familiar. The adult Cur- 
culio is a small, hard 
beetle (shown magnified 
at Fig. 3, c), which ap- 
pears in the plum or- 
chard early in spring, 
and feeds upon the foli- 
age and flowers until the fruit is well formed. It then 
attacks the young plums, gnawing at them to satisfy 
its hunger, and cutting crescent-shaped marks in the 
skin to deposit its eggs (d). In a short time these 
eggs hatch into little grubs that feed upon the pulp of 
the fruit, gradually working toward the pit. In a few 




c 

Fig. 3. Plum Curculio: a, larva; 
£, pupa ; c, beetle, magnified ; d, 
plum, showing crescent mark. 



Spraying Against Insects 13 

weeks they become full-grown (V), by which time the 
infested plums have generally fallen to the ground. 
The larvae then leave the fruit, and entering the soil a 
short distance change to pupae (b). A little while later 
they again change and come forth as perfect beetles. 
There is but one brood in the season. 

As the eggs of this insect are deposited beneath the 
skin of the fruit, it is manifestly impossible to reach 
the larvae by spraying. But by coating the young fruit 
and foliage with particles of Paris green we can kill 
the parent beetle before it inserts the egg, and thus 
the plums will escape. And this is done by many of 
the leading orchardists of America. 

Besides these two insects affecting the fruit of or- 
chard trees, against which the spraying-machine is 
especially used, there are many enemies of the foliage 
which are open to destruction by similar means. One 
of the worst of these pests is the Canker Worm, 
which at more or less frequent intervals during the last 
century has scourged both orchard and shade trees in 
many parts of the United States and Canada. It is 
represented in its different stages in Fig. 4. The 
worm or larva hatches from masses of small cylindrical 
eggs (<?) deposited upon the bark of the tree. It feeds 
upon the parenchyma of the leaves, causing a badly 
infested tree to appear brown and seared, as if scorched 
by fire. These worms continue feeding for several 
weeks before becoming full grown ; they then descend 
to the ground, burrow into the soil a short distance, 
and spin silken cocoons within which they change to 



14 



Spraying Crops 




the pupa or chrysalis state and later emerge as moths. 

The two sexes of the 
moths differ greatly : 
the male (a) has large, 
well developed wings, 
while the female (b) is 
wingless. The latter 
is of an ash-gray 
color. On emerging 
from the chrysalis she 

Fig. 4. Canker Worm : *, eggs ; /, larva ; Crawls to the base of 
g, pupa ;«, male moth ; *, female moth. the ^^ and ascend _ 

ing the trunk deposits eggs on the twigs or branches 
of the tree. 

The Canker Worm, with nearly all other leaf-eating 
caterpillars, falls an easy victim to the spraying-ma- 
chine. 

Feeding Habits of Insects 

Insects take their food in two ways : some bite and 
others suck. The three species mentioned under the 
last heading are examples of those insects which take 
their food by biting, piece by piece, the tissues of 
leaf, stem, or fruit of their host-plant. Because of 
this they may be destroyed by placing particles of 
poison upon the surface of the plant. A large propor- 
tion of the injurious insects have such biting mouth- 
parts ; but there is also an important class which have 
instead of jaws a pointed beak that they push into the 
cells of the plant, and suck out the sap. Insects of 



Fungous Diseases 15 

this kind cannot be destroyed by coating the food- 
plant with particles of poison, for such particles will 
not enter their alimentary system ; consequently, one 
must use against them some insecticide which kills 
by contact. There are several such insecticides in 
common use, the most important, perhaps, being insect 
powder and kerosene emulsion. 

Development of Parasitic Fungi 

Many other instances of the usefulness of the spray- 
ing-machine in controlling noxious insects will be 
found on the later pages of this little book. To illus- 
trate the theory of its use against the fungous enemies 
of crops, as well as the life-history of the parasitic 
fungi themselves, we may instance the Downy Mildew, 
which causes the Brown Rot of grapes. 

The Brown Rot of grapes is a fungous disease — that 
is, it is a diseased condition of the foliage or fruit due 
to the presence of a fungus. This fungus is a minute, 
parasitic plant that develops at the expense of the tis- 
sues of the grape, thus causing blighting of the leaf 
and decay of the fruit. It attacks all the green parts 
of the vine, including the young shoots, as well as the 
leaves and berries ; and, like other fungi, reproduces 
by means of spores — minute bodies corresponding in 
function to the seeds of flowering plants. 

When one of these spores falls upon a moist leaf its 
contents divide into a number of distinct particles 
which escape through an opening in the spore-wall. 
Each of these particles moves about in the drop of 




1 6 Spraying Crops 

water on the leaf for a few minutes, then comes to a 
standstill and germinates by sending out a little tube 
— somewhat as a kernel 
of corn in moist soil 
sends out its germinat- 
ing radicle — and this 
tube penetrates the epi- 
dermis or skin of the 
leaf. Once inside, the 

tube Continues to grow, FlG - 5- Section of leaf showing mycel- 

ium of fungus. Magnified. 

pushing about between 

the cells of the leaf, and forming what is called the 
mycelium, or vegetative portion of the fungus, which 
may be likened to the roots of the higher plants, As 
there is little nourishment to be obtained between the 
cells, this mycelium develops minute processes which 
push through the cell walls and absorb the cell con- 
tents. A small section of an affected leaf, greatly 
magnified, is represented in Fig. 5, the unshaded 
double-walled spaces representing the leaf cells, the 
shaded part between the walls the mycelium of the 
fungus, and the projections marked a, a, the processes 
or suckers that penetrate the cells. 

After this mycelium has developed in the leaf for 
some time, it is ready to produce its spores. Conse- 
quently it sends out through the breathing pores or 
stomata of the leaf its fruiting branches. These bear 
upon their tips small oval bodies which are the spores. 
Some of these fruiting branches are shown in Fig. 6. 
The " mildew " visible to the naked eye is composed 



Fungous Diseases 



17 



of these fruiting branches and their spores. It only 
develops under certain atmospheric conditions ; so 

that the mycelium may exist 
in the affected parts of the 
vine for some time before 
this outward manifestation 
of its presence occurs. Be- 
sides the spores above de- 
scribed, which are produced 
during the summer season, 
and consequently are called 
summer spores, there is de- 
veloped in autumn a differ- 
ent class of spores, by which 
the fungus passes through 
the winter. Hence, these 
latter are called the winter 




spores. 
It is 



evident from the 



Fig.6. Fruiting branches. Greatly a b0Ve account of this fun- 

magmfied. g US p ar asite tflat remedial 

or preventive measures are useless after the enemy has 
become established within the tissues of the plant. 
But its ingress may be prevented by coating the green 
parts of the vine with some substance having a de- 
structive effect upon fungus spores. The salts of 
copper have such an effect, and in consequence have 
come into general use as fungicides. 



1 8 Spraying Crops 

The Philosophy of Spraying 

From the foregoing illustrations the reader will have 
learned that spraying is simply an easy and practical 
method of distributing certain substances having a 
destructive effect upon insect and fungous life over 
the outer surfaces of trees, shrubs, vines, and her- 
baceous plants. These substances are usually applied 
in a finely powdered condition, and the tiny particles 
stand guard over the plants, killing with remorseless 
certainty any insect or fungous pest that attempts to 
pass through their lines to reach the plant. The 
particles themselves do not enter the plant, but remain 
on the outside until driven off by the combined action 
of wind, rain, dew, and sunshine. This is not true, 
however, of the contact-killing insecticides, which are 
applied directly to the offending insects, and do not 
remain on the plant in an effective condition. 

Substances used to destroy insects are called insec- 
ticides ; those used to destroy fungi are called fungi- 
cides. 

Insecticides used in Spraying 

The insecticides used in spraying may be broadly 
divided into two classes : (i) internal poisons, or 
those which take effect by being eaten along with the 
ordinary food of the insect ; and (2) external irritants, 
or those which act from the outside, — closing the 
breathing pores, or causing death by irritation of the 
skin. The most important insecticides are the poisons. 



Insecticides Used in Spraying 19 

Of these the most popular are the combinations of 
arsenic, known as Paris green and London purple. 

Paris Green is a chemical combination of arsenic 
and copper, containing about 55 or 60 per cent, of 
arsenic. It is almost insoluble in water ; but there is 
often a small percentage of it soluble, and to prevent 
the injury this may do to foliage it pays to add a little 
fresh lime water (made by slaking fresh lime in water) 
to the spraying mixture. It may be used in spraying 
potatoes, apple trees, and most shade trees, at the rate 
of 4 ounces to 50 gallons of water. On stone fruits, 
especially peach, use half this strength, unless lime 
is added. Paris green is a heavy powder, and does 
not stay long in suspension ; hence it must be kept 
constantly stirred to prevent its settling to the bottom 
of the vessel. Buy Paris green in as finely powdered 
condition as possible and get it of a reliable dealer. 

London Purple generally contains nearly the same 
percentage of arsenic as Paris green ; but the arsenic 
is often in a more soluble form, and consequently 
London purple is more likely to injure foliage than 
Paris green, unless lime is added. It is a finer powder 
than the green and remains in suspension in water 
longer. It is also cheaper. Before using, the soluble 
arsenic should be made insoluble by the addition of 
lime water. One of the best ways to do this is to add 
three fourths of a pound of lime to a pound of London 
purple, and thoroughly mix them in a gallon of hot 
water, allowing the mixture to stand two hours and 
keeping it hot during this time if it can be conveniently 



20 Spraying Crops 

done. In this way the soluble arsenic will be rendered 
insoluble, and the London purple may be used at the 
rate of 4 or 5 ounces to a barrel of water. Or the 
London purple may be added to the water as usual, 
and about 2 gallons of fresh milk of lime (made by 
slaking lime in water) strained into the barrel. If 
allowed to stand an hour, all the soluble arsenic is 
more likely to be rendered insoluble than if used at 
once. After London purple has been thus treated 
with lime it can safely be applied to tender foliage at 
a strength of 4 ounces to 50 gallons of water. Both 
London purple and Paris green may be added to the 
Bordeaux mixture (4 ozs. poison to 50 gallons mixture), 
as described more fully on page 31, and then the 
treatment with lime is not necessary. 

Hellebore is a vegetable poison, and kills both by 
contact and by being eaten. It may be applied in 
water, 1 oz. to 3 gallons, or 1 lb. to a barrel. It is 
especially excellent in destroying the imported currant 
worm. 

Pyrethrum, or Insect Powder, is made from the 
powdered flowers of plants of the genus Pyrethrum. 
The greatest obstacle to the use of Pyrethrum has 
been the difficulty in obtaining the pure, fresh article. 
After long exposure to the air it loses much of its 
insecticidal value. It is used mainly as a dry powder 
or in water (1 ounce to 3 gallons) ; but may also be 
used in the form of a tea, or a decoction, a fume, or 
an alcoholic extract diluted. 

Kerosene Emulsion, — There are two methods of 



Insecticides Used in Spraying 21 

preparing this in common use, — one originating with 
Messrs. Riley and Hubbard, and the other with Prof. 
A. J. Cook. Both have their advocates. According 
to the former it is prepared by adding 2 gallons of 
kerosene to 1 gallon of a solution made by dissolving 
y 2 pound of hard soap in 1 gallon of boiling water, 
and churning the mixture by forcing it back into the 
same vessel through a force-pump with a rather small 
nozzle until the whole forms a creamy mass, which 
will thicken into a jelly-like substance on cooling. 
The soap solution should be hot when the kerosene is 
added, but of course must not be near a fire. The 
emulsion thus made is to be diluted before using, with 
nine or ten parts of water to one part of emulsion. 
The amount of dilution varies with different insects. 
Soft water or rain water should be used in diluting. 
If this cannot be obtained add a little lye or bicarbo- 
nate of soda ; or prepare according to one of the 
following methods. 

Professor Cook has two formulas, — one where soft 
soap is used and the other for hard soap. He describes 
them as follows : 

Cook's Soft Soap Emission. — " Dissolve 1 qt. of soft 
soap in 2 qts. of boiling water. Remove from fire 
and, while still boiling hot, add 1 pint of kerosene and 
immediately agitate with the pump as described above. 
In two or three minutes the emulsion will be perfect. 
This should be diluted by adding an equal amount of 
water, when it is ready for use. This always emulsifies 
readily with hard or soft water ; always remains perm a- 



22 Spraying Crops 

nent, for years even, and is very easily diluted, even 
in the coldest weather and without any heating. In 
this last respect it has no equal, so far as we have 
experimented. The objections to it are, — We cannot 
always procure the soft soap, though many farmers 
make it, and it is generally to be found in our markets. 
It occasionally injures the foliage, probably owing to 
the caustic properties of the soap. We have used this 
freely for years, and never saw any injury till the past 
season. In case of any such trouble, use only one 
half the amount of soap — one pint instead of one 
quart. It works just as well." 

Cook's Hard Soap Emulsion. — " Dissolve % lb. of 
hard soap, — Ivory, Babbitt, Jaxon, or whale oil, etc. , — 
in 2 quarts of water ; add, as before, i pint of kerosene, 
and pump the mixture back into itself while hot. This 
always emulsifies at once, and is permanent with hard 
as well as soft water. This is diluted with twice its 
bulk of water before use. The objection to a large 
amount of water sinks before the fact that this secures 
a sure and permanent emulsion even though diluted 
with hard water. This also becomes, with certain 
soaps, lumpy or stringy when cold, so that it cannot be 
readily diluted with cold water unless first heated. 
Yet this is true with all hard soap emulsions in case 
of certain soaps. We can, however, always dilute 
easily if we do so at once before our emulsion is cold, 
and we can also do the same either by heating our 
emulsion or diluent, no mater how long we wait." 

When the undiluted emulsion, however made, is to 



Insecticides Used in Spraying 23 

be kept for future use, store it in a cool, dark place. 
When desired for use measure out the required amount 
and mix it with three or four parts of boiling water. 
Then add cold water to fill out the dilution. 

Fish-oil Soap. — Professor J. B. Smith and others re- 
port excellent results in the use of this substance 
against plant-lice and similar insects. This soap is on 
the market at about 12 cents a pound, but according 
to Professor Smith it can be made much more cheaply 
by the following formula : 

Hirsh's crystal potash lye . . . . 1 pound. 

Fish oil 3 pints. 

Soft water 3 gallons. 

Dissolve the lye in the water,' heat to boiling, and 
then add the oil. It should be boiled about two 
hours, and when done water can be added to make up 
for the loss by evaporation. For use as an insecticide 
it is made into a dilute suds by dissolving 1 lb. of 
soap in 8 gallons of water. It is less liable to injure 
foliage than kerosene emulsion. 

Lime Spray is made by slaking a half-peck or a peck 
of fresh lime in water, and pouring into a barrel nearly 
full of water, straining the lumps out as it enters the 
barrel. By means of this and the spray-pump, trees 
and vines may be literally whitewashed. It is useful 
in mechanically coating plants so that certain insects 
will not molest them. 

Tobacco Decoction. — This is made by boiling refuse 
tobacco stems or dust in water, or pouring boiling 
water over them. This gives a concentrated liquid 



2 4 Spraying Crops 

which is to be diluted with cold water, until there are 
two gallons water for each pound of tobacco used. It 
is a good remedy for plant-lice. A stronger formula 
recommended by Mr. M. V. Slingerland is to steep 5 
pounds of tobacco stems in 3 gallons of water for 3 
hours ; then strain and dilute with enough water to 
make 7 gallons, when the decoction is ready to use. 

Whale Oil Soap. — Dissolve in water at the rate of 
two ounces soap to one gallon water. This is good to 
destroy plant-lice, rose-slugs, etc. 

Fungicides used in Spraying 

The principal fungicides used in spraying are cer- 
tain salts of copper, especially the sulphate of copper 
and the carbonate of copper. These substances were 
first experimented with on a large scale in France, and 
gave such satisfactory results that they were adopted 
in a practical way by many vineyardists. In America 
they have been used for this purpose only about a dec- 
ade ; yet thanks to numerous investigations and exper- 
iments their efficacy is well attested and they are in 
practical use over a large territory. Their principal 
combinations are indicated below : 

Bordeaux Mixture. — This fungicide originated in 
France, and has become one of the leading combina- 
tions of copper salts. Since its introduction into 
America there has been a constant tendency to dilute 
the mixture more and more. The results from the di- 
luted mixtures have been apparently as good as from 
those of full strength, and of course the cost has been 



Fungicides Used in Spraying 25 

proportionately lessened. The different formulas are 
indicated below : 

Original Formula. — Dissolve 6 pounds copper sul- 
phate in 1 gallon hot water in an earthen or wooden 
vessel. In another vessel slake 3 pounds fresh lime 
in 1 gallon water. Strain the latter, and add to 20 
gallons water. Now pour in the dissolved copper sul- 
phate and mix thoroughly. Keep the mixture stirred 
while using. This strong mixture is now seldom used. 

Half-strength Formula. — In 1889, while at the Ohio 
Experiment Station, I experimented with potato blight 
by diluting this mixture a little more than half, using 
6 pounds copper sulphate and 4 pounds lime to 50 
gallons water, instead of 22 gallons. This was applied 
to a number of plants besides potatoes, and apparently 
gave as good results as undiluted mixtures. The same 
formula was also successfully used in 1890, and has 
been quite generally adopted since, although the fol- 
lowing dilute formula is probably better for general use. 

Dilute Formula. — In 1891 Mr. W. J. Green, of the 
Ohio Experiment Station, used on apples, plums 
pears, cherries, raspberries, etc. , a still more dilute 
mixture, viz. , 4 pounds copper sulphate and 4 pounds 
fresh lime to 50 gallons water, and obtained very good 
results. The cost of the copper sulphate in a barrel 
of this mixture is less than one third the cost of that 
in a barrel prepared according to the original formula. 
Successful results have been obtained with even 
weaker mixtures. 

Mr. Green recommends the following method of 



26 Spraying Crops 

making the mixture : " Dissolve the copper sulphate 
in 2 gallons of hot water, and pour into the barrel or 
tank used in spraying, after which fill the tank nearly 
half full of cold water. Slake the lime in another 
vessel and pour into the copper sulphate solution, 
straining through a brass wire strainer with about 30 
meshes to the inch. The lime will not dissolve readily ; 
hence after pouring off each time, more water is to be 
added to the lime and poured off as before, until 
nearly all the lime is dissolved, or taken up in sus- 
pension, which is really the case. Water to make 40 
or 50 gallons in all is then to be added." 

Granulated copper sulphate should be purchased as 
it is much easier to dissolve than the crystalline form. 
Be sure to use fresh lime. 

A special advantage of the Bordeaux mixture is, 
that London purple or Paris green can be added to it, 
making a combined insecticide and fungicide. 

Care should be taken not to use the Bordeaux mixt- 
ure on fruit crops too late in the season. Traces of 
it remain for some time, notwithstanding numerous 
rains, and are liable to cause unnecessary suspicions 
when on marketed fruit. When a fruit crop requires 
treatment within a month of the time of picking, it is 
better to substitute some fungicide like eau celeste or 
carbonate of copper, but it is doubtful if even these 
combinations should be applied so near the time of 
the fruit harvest. With nearly if not quite all our 
fruit diseases, treatment should begin early and not 
continue too late. 



Fungicides Used in Spraying 27 

It sometimes happens that traces of Bordeaux mixt- 
ure remain upon the fruit even when a considerable 
interval elapses between the last application and the 
ripening of the fruit. Such traces may be easily 
removed by dipping in a solution made by adding two 
gallons cider vinegar to ten gallons water. A good 
way is to have three tubs, one holding the vinegar 
mixture and the other two pure water. Then place 
the grapes or other fruit in wire baskets holding fifteen 
to twenty pounds, dip them in the vinegar tub for five 
minutes and then rinse in the two tubs of clear water, 
afterwards spreading the fruit on frames or shelves, 
something like those used in the fruit evaporators. 
Grapes can be treated in this way on a large scale for 
six cents a hundred pounds. 

Eau Celeste. — This is made by dissolving 2 pounds 
copper sulphate in 2 or 3 gallons of hot water in an 
earthen or wooden vessel (such as the large crocks 
used for butter, or wooden pails or tubs), then adding 
1 quart of ammonia and mixing with 50 or 60 gallons 
of water. It is the fungicide most generally employed 
against the Downy Mildew or Brown Rot of grapes. 

Modified Eau Celeste. — Dissolve 1 pound sulphate 
of copper in hot water; in another vessel dissolve \% 
pounds sal soda in hot water ; when cool mix the two 
solutions thoroughly, then add 1 quart ammonia and 
dilute to 25 gallons water. 

Carbonate of Copper. — This is commonly used in 
the form of an ammoniacal solution made by dis- 
solving 4 ounces carbonate of copper in 2 quarts of 



28 Spraying Crops 

ammonia, and then adding to a barrel (50 gal.) of 
water. To prevent loss from evaporation of ammonia 
the dissolved corbonate should be added to the water 
immediately before spraying. It is a simple fungicide, 
easy to make and apply, and as it is a clear solution 
there is no trouble with its clogging nozzles. It has 
been successfully used to prevent apple scab and 
various mildews, etc. 

A combination of carbonate of copper and carbonate 
of ammonia, recommended by Prof. F. D. Chester as 
superior to the above, is made as follows : " Mix 
together 3 ounces carbonate of copper and 1 pound 
pulverized carbonate of ammonia. Dissolve this mixt- 
ure in 2 quarts hot water and add to 50 gallons water." 
A barrel of this mixture costs 1 2 cents. 

Professor Chester also reports good results from 
copper carbonate prepared as follows : " Thoroughly 
mix in half a pail of water, 1 pound of carbonate of 
copper, to which is added 3 ounces of common glue 
dissolved in hot water, then dilute to 25 gallons." It 
would probably be better to dilute to 50 gallons. 

Sulphate of Copper. — Besides its use in combination 
with other substances, copper sulphate is often applied 
to vines and trees early in spring to destroy the winter 
spores of fungi. For this purpose it is used in a 
simple solution made by dissolving 2 pounds copper 
sulphate in 50 gallons water. 

Galloway's Mixture No. 5. — Mr. B. T. Galloway 
lately announced that the best fungicide for apple scab 
and other diseases of pomaceous fruits, is a combina- 



Fungicides Used in Spraying 29 

tion sent out by him in 1890 as Mixture No. 5 : "It 
consists of equal parts of ammoniated copper sulphate 
and ammonium carbonate. It was used at the rate of 
8 to 12 ounces to 25 gallons water. The special 
advantages of the mixture are (1) cheapness; (2) ease 
of preparation and application, and (3) that it can be 
put up in dry form in small or large packages, making 
it easy and convenient to handle by the practical man 
in the field, and the store-keeper who wishes to place 
it upon the market. The chief objection to it is, that 
it sometimes burns the foliage. While this drawback 
may in time be overcome, it is necessary that we know 
of it in order that due care may be observed in using 
the solution." 

Potassium Sulphide. — Dissolve y^ ounce of potassium 
sulphide (liver of sulphur) in 1 gallon of hot water. 
When cold apply in a spray. Used to prevent goose- 
berry mildew and similar diseases. 

Soda Hyposulphite. — Dissolve ^ ounce or 1 ounce 
soda hyposulphite in 10 gallons water. This is recom- 
mended by some for gooseberry mildew and apple 
scab, but it is not in general use. 

Lye Solution. — Professor Wm. B. Alwood recom- 
mends a solution of 8 cans of concentrated lye in 50 
gallons water for spraying on trees and vines early in 
spring, before the buds are started, to kill fungus spores. 
If applied after buds are started much damage might 
result. 

Caution. — Most of these copper compounds corrode 
tin and iron. Consequently, in preparing them for 



30 Spraying Crops 

use, earthen, wooden, or brass vessels should be 
employed ; and in applying them the parts of the pump 
which come in contact with the liquid should be made 
of brass. 

Combinations of Insecticides and Fungicides 

Soon after fungicides came into prominence in this 
country the writer called attention 1 to the advantages 
of so combining them with insecticides that both may 
be applied at the same time and in the same mixture. 
Before then, entomologists had worked out remedies 
for insects, and botanists remedies for plant diseases, 
but very little had been done in so combining the 
treatment that the practical man might, so to speak, 
" kill two birds with one stone." In the article referred 
to I said, — "The necessity of treatment for both 
classes of injuries is at once apparent to all who have 
experienced the serious losses due to these agents. 
Obviously, it is of little use to save a plum crop from 
the curculio, if it is to be destroyed by the fungous 
disease known as fruit rot ; to save raspberries from 
the slug if they are to be ruined by anthracnose; to 
save the grape buds from the flea beetle if the berries 
are to be destroyed by black rot ; or to save a pear 
crop from the ravages of the codling moth and curculio 
if it is to be distorted and disfigured by the scab ; or, 
to take an example which will strike home to a large 
proportion of American farmers, it is scarcely worth 
while to save the potatoes from the Colorado beetle if 

1 Agricultural Science, 1889. 



Combined Insecticides and Fungicides 



<b 



they are to be ruined by a more serious enemy — the 
potato blight. While the necessity for preventing, so 
far as possible, injuries to both these classes of or- 
ganisms is obvious, it is almost equally evident that 
there will be a great loss of time and labor if each is 
treated separately. For instance, the farmer who 
sprays his potatoes with the arsenites two or three 
times for the beetles, and then goes over them again 
with solutions of copper sulphate for the blight, would 
have accomplished the same end in half the time by 
mixing the copper sulphate and London purple or 
Paris green in one solution and applying them togeth- 
er. The same is true of the treatment of apples, pears, 
plums, and in fact, of a large proportion of the crops 
liable to injury by both insects and fungi." 

Since the above was written a great many experi- 
ments along the lines indicated have been made, and 
we now have a number of satisfactory combinations. 
Chief among these are the following: 

Bordeaux Mixture and Arsenites. — Add 4 ounces 
London purple or Paris green to 50 gallons of dilute 
Bordeaux Mixture. This is one of the very best com- 
bined insecticides and fungicides. It can be used 
safely and effectively upon a great variety of crops, 
— such as potatoes for Colorado beetles and blight, 
apples and pears for insects and scab, and plums for 
curculio and leaf or fruit diseases. The remarks on 
page 26 concerning late applications of the Bordeaux 
mixture are equally applicable to this combination. 

Arsenites and Copper Carbonate. — The Ohio Experi- 



32 



Spraying Crops 



ment Station recommends the following combination : 
Paris green 2 ounces, carbonate of copper 2 ounces, 
dissolve in 3 pints of ammonia, add y 2 pound lime and 
1 barrel of water. It is advised that this be substi- 
tuted for the arsenite and Bordeaux combination for 
the later sprayings of apples, pears, plums, etc., so to 
avoid the lime coating on the fruit. 

Care must be taken in combining the arsenites with 
other fungicide solutions, as one is liable thus to pro- 
duce a compound very injurious to foliage. Paris 
green or London purple added to simple solutions of 
copper sulphate, or to ammonia compounds without 
lime, injures foliage vastly more than in simple water 
mixture. 

Cost of Spraying Materials 

The average retail and wholesale prices of the vari- 
ous materials used in the spraying mixtures above 
described are approximately indicated in the following 
table : 





Wholesale. 


Retail. 




Per lb. 


Per lb. 


Ammonia (22 ° Baume) 


#0 07 


#0 25 


Carbonate of copper (precipitated) 


35 


60 


Carbonate of ammonia 


10 


3° 


London purple 


06-07 


10-15 


Paris green . - 


18 


30 


Pyrethrum . 


22-40 


40-70 


Soda hypo-sulphate . 


09 


20 


Sal soda ...... 


oii/ 4 


°5 


Sulphate of copper (granulated) 


5-07 


10-15 


White hellebore . 


12 


25 


Whale oil soap . 


08-10 


15-20 



Prejicdice Against Spraying. $$ 

Prejudice Against Spraying 

It is quite natural that when most people first learn 
that the fruit they eat has at some time in its history 
been sprayed with poison they should object on 
hygienic grounds. Both in Europe and America the 
development of the practice of spraying has been 
accompanied by occasional scares, the last one on this 
side of the water occurring in September, 1891, when 
the people of New York, Boston, and other eastern 
cities were agitated by an exaggerated "grape scare," 
due to the finding of particles of Bordeaux mixture on 
some of the grapes in the New York market. But 
when the spraying, either with the insecticides or 
fungicides now commonly in use, is done with proper 
reference to the time, methods and conditions of treat- 
ment, there is no danger to the consumer. Both practi- 
cal experience and chemical tests have demonstrated 
that apples sprayed early in the season with Paris 
green or London purple retain none of the poison at 
the time of ripening. The most recent demonstration 
of this appears in the last report of the experimental 
farms of Canada. A peck of Rhode Island Greening 
apples that had been sprayed twice with Paris green 
(one pound to two hundred gallons of water) were 
carefully gathered, without rubbing, and tested for 
arsenic. "The process to which they were submitted 
is one that affords extremely accurate results, and is 
considered the most delicate of all for the detection of 
arsenic. It is capable of revealing the presence of one 
fifty-thousandth part of a grain of arsenic. If twenty- 



34 Spraying Crops 

three thousand bushels of apples contained two and a 
half grains of arsenic, the minimum fatal dose for an 
adult, the poison could have been detected by this 
method." Notwithstanding the most careful analysis no 
traces of poison were found ; and, in conclusion, the 
chemist states, — " I am of the opinion that futher experi- 
ments of this nature would only serve to corroborate this 
negative result, and to prove that there are no grounds 
on which to base a suspicion that our sprayed apples 
are poisonous. The insoluble character of this poison 
precluding its assimilation by the apple, if such were 
possible, the infinitesimal part of Paris green that can 
remain on the apple, the frequent rains subsequent to 
the spraying, — all go to substantiate the argument 
that there is not the slightest danger of poisoning in 
using sprayed apples." 

There is abundant evidence of a similar nature con- 
cerning the use of copper salts on grapes. In France, 
where a large proportion of the grape crop is converted 
into wine, elaborate investigations have shown that prac- 
tically none of the copper salts are present in wine from 
sprayed vineyards. Prof. B. Fallot, of the School of 
Agriculture at Montpellier, in recording the results of 
one of these investigations, says, — " The figures obtain- 
ed have proved once more that wines, after the grapes 
have received numerous treatments with large quanti- 
ties of salts of copper, contain scarcely a trace of this 
substance, and are entirely harmless." 



Spray ' ing App a ra tics 



35 



Spraying Apparatus 

The chief requisites of a good spraying-machine are 
that it be durable, easily worked, not too expensive for 
the purpose intended, that it throw a fine spray and 
have a good-sized cylinder, and that the reservoir 
holding the liquid be large enough for the purpose in- 
tended. For fungicides the parts touching the liquid 
should be made of brass. Although ten years ago 
there was scarcely an implement for this purpose upon 
the market, there are scores of them to-day, and 
several manufacturers handle them exclusively. They 
may be had in all shapes, styles and sizes, from the 
small hand-spray pump to be used with a bucket and 
costing a dollar or two, up to the large horse-power 
geared machine. costing fifty times as much. 

There are four general styles of spraying-machines 
upon the market. First, 
we have the small buck- 
et pumps that serve a 
useful purpose where 
only a comparatively 
small amount of spray- 
ing is to be done ; then 
come the knapsack 
sprayers, one of the 
best of which is illus- 
ustrated by Fig. 7, 
which are especially 
useful in spraying small 
vineyards and crops where a horse 




•£&** 



Fig. 7. The Galloway Knapsack Sprayer. 

cannot well be 



3& 



Spraying Crops 



driven ; third, we have what may be called the barrel 
class of sprayers, being good-sized pumps to be at- 
tached to barrels mounted in various ways ; and, 
finally, there are the large geared machines working 
automatically by horse-power. For the general pur- 
poses of the average farmer or fruit-grower the barrel 
machines are much the most useful. They are also 
of moderate cost, ranging from $8 to $16. They can 
be used in spraying all sorts of crops, and may well 




Fig. 8. The Chester Sprayer. 

be mounted on seperate wheels, as in the Chester 
sprayer shown above, or the barrel may be placed in 
a wagon when in use. 

A cheap and efficient home-made spraying cart, 
designed by Professor F. D. Chester, is illustrated in 
Fig. 8. According to Professor Chester, "It can be 



Spraying Apparatus 37 

made by any wheelwright, and consists of a truck 
mounted upon a pair of carriage wheels. Upon this is 
placed a barrel holding fifty gallons, held in place by 
a strap, which surrounds the same and which is tied in 
front at either trace. The barrel has a tight-fitting 
cover, firmly strapped in place ; upon this is seated 
the pump. In the large cover is an opening, covered 
by a lid for filling. Any good force-pump can be used 
upon the barrel, but it is important that it should be 
good, and the cheapest are in the long run the dearest. 
The cheaper iron pumps are excellent at first, but will 
soon corrode where caustic fungicides are used, even 
with the best of care. All metallic parts that have 
contact with the fungicides should be of brass. The 
pump should have a double discharge, one for the 
spray and another to return a portion of the fluid back 
to the barrel to keep the same agitated," The pump 
should have a hose attached, 15 to 20 feet long, with 
a good spray-nozzle at the end. 

For work in" the nursery as well as many other 
places an excellent spraying outfit " can be made by 
firmly fastening a barrel, end up, on a sled made of 
heavy durable timber. Mount upon the barrel a good 
strong double-acting force-pump provided with two- 
hose attachments, to each end of which fasten 25 feet 
of y<z inch hose. To the end of each hose attach a 
Vermorel nozzle ; then with the necessary gearing for 
hitching the horse, the outfit is complete. For oper- 
ating the machine two men and a horse are required. 



38 



Spraying Crops 



One man does the pumping and attends to the horse, 
while the other walks behind and directs the spray 
over two rows at a time." 1 

A good outfit for use in the vineyard, recommended 
by Professor Bailey, is illustrated in Fig. 9. A barrel 




Fig. 9. Spraying Grapes. 

with pump is mounted crosswise on the wagon, " and 
the driver rides and pumps. Another man walks 
behind and throws the spray up under the vines and 
on to all the clusters by means of a Vermorel nozzle 
attached to a half-inch gas pipe. This gas pipe has 
somewhat the form of a slim letter S, the nozzle being 
attached to one terminal crook, the other crook resting 

iGalloway. 



Spraying Apparatus 



39 



over the man's left arm. The hose is attached near 
the shoulder. The pipe is so long that the operator is 
not obliged to stoop, and he can direct the spray in 
any direction, while the apparatus hangs easily upon 
the arm. A globe valve just below the arm enables 
the operator to shut off the stream at will." 

A handy, home-made, wheelbarrow spraying outfit, 
gotten up by Professor Bailey, is illustrated in Fig. 10. 




Fig. io. Method of Spraying Bushes. 



It is useful in garden work, especially in spraying small 
bushes. A Cyclone or Vermorel nozzle is used to 
underspray the foliage. 

The nozzle forms an important part of the spraying 
outfit. There are many varieties of these upon the 
market; some of them are better adapted to certain 
kinds of work than others, so that it pays to have sev- 



40 Spraying Crops 

eral forms on hand where there is a variety of spray- 
ing to be done. Some of the best forms are the Ver- 
morel, Climax, Cyclone, Graduating Spray, and Mason. 
The Improved McGowen Nozzle No. 7, manufactured 
by J. J. McGowen, Ithaca, N. Y., is very good for 
orchard work. For spraying large trees, some method 
of raising the nozzle nearly to the top is generally 
necessary. The commonest way of doing this is to 
fasten the nozzle and hose to a long pole ; but a better 
way is to use a half-inch gas pipe or a brass tube, 12 
or 14 feet long, attaching the hose at one end and the 
nozzle at the other, or one of the bamboo extensions 
manufactured by some spraying firms. 

Pyrethro-Kerosene Emulsion 

Besides the contact-killing insecticides already men- 
tioned, a combination of kerosene and pyrethrum has 
lately proven very effective in destroying plant-lice 
and similar pests. It maybe made by mixing 1^ lbs- 
pyrethrum powder with 3 quarts of kerosene in a light 
vessel. Allow this to stand four days : then add to 3 
gallons of boiling soap-suds (made by dissolving 1 lb. 
of soap in 3 gals, water) and pump forcibly into 
the same vessel for ten minutes. This makes an 
emulsion that may be diluted with 150 parts of water 
and yet be effective as an aphis destroyer. 

Cost of Spraying 

The cost of spraying depends, of course, upon vari- 
ous conditions, such as the crop sprayed, number of 



Spraying Apparatus 41 

applications, apparatus, and mixture used, etc. It is 
usually estimated that full-grown orchard trees can be 
sprayed at a cost of 15 to 25 cents per tree per season, 
while nursery trees can be treated with Bordeaux mixt- 
ure the first two seasons for about 25 cents per thousand 
trees per season. 

Professor L. R. Jones, of the Vermont Station, has 
summarized several seasons' experience of the expense 
of spraying potatoes as follows : " It is impossible to 
give a general estimate that will suit all cases, as there 
are so many varying conditions. The amount of the 
mixture necessary to cover an acre will vary all the 
way from 50 to 300 gallons, according to the amount 
of foliage and the methods of application. Where we 
have covered an acre with 50 gallons in the middle of 
July, we have used 100 or 150 gallons per acre on the 
same piece in August. Again, in the latter part of 
August, we have sprayed a poor piece of half- blighted 
plants with 100 gallons per acre, and on the same day, 
on another piece where the ground was covered with 
a mass of luxuriant leaves, we have found it neces- 
sary to use fully 250 gallons per acre. Again, * * # 
the number of applications varies with seasons. In 
189 1 a single application, made August 20th, was suf- 
ficient on a piece of late potatoes, while in 1892 three 
applications were necessary. In general, we should 
plan for making three applications on all except very 
early or very late potatoes. These three applications 
will require from 200 to 500 gallons of the mixture, — 
on the average 400 gallons — used (in Vermont) as 



42 Spraying Crops 

follows: ioo gallons per acre the last of July, 150 
gallons per acre the middle of August, 150 gallons per 
acre the last of August. This estimate is for a field 
planted about May 15 to May 20, and which will yield 
200 bushels per acre. In our work it has taken (for 
three applications) about 2 gallons of mixture per 
bushel of yield. On early potatoes a fourth application 
may sometimes be necessary to keep off the Early 
Blight, the first application being made the first week 
in July ; in this case it will take about 2^ gallons per 
bushel of yield. The mixture costs us about ^ cent 
per gallon, as follows : 

5 pounds blue virriol at 7 cents • • • 35 cents. 

5 „ lime at y 2 cent : . . . . 2% cents. 

Total cost of 50 gallons weak mixture . . 37% cents. 

" As most potato growers have to pay a little more 
than this for blue vitriol, one cent per gallon is about 
the average cost. The cost of applying also varies 
much, depending upon luxuriance of growth of plants, 
and upon apparatus used. In our work, with a barrel 
pump, three men and one horse have sprayed an acre 
well in two hours, when water was convenient, or at 
the rate of five acres a day, making the expense of 
labor about $i per acre. Others with similar apparatus 
have said they could cover ten acres a day." 

The cost of spraying one acre of potatoes three 
times is summarized thus : 

Minimum. Maximum. Average. 

200 to 500 gallons at 1 cent each $2.00 $5.00 $4.00 

Labor 1.50 3.75 3.00 

$2.zo S8.7; #7.oo 



Profits of Spraying 43 

"When we consider our gain of an average of 113 
bushels per acre, worth last fall 80 cents per bushel, 
or $90.40, the profit is great even at the maximum 
expense." 

Profits of Spraying 

The profit of spraying has been abundantly dem- 
onstrated in nearly all parts of the United States. 
The benefit derived is usually so marked that the man 
who tries the method becomes its enthusiastic advo- 
cate. In most cases there is not only a greatly in- 
creased crop, but the quality of the crop is so improved 
that it commands a higher price; and in the case of 
vines or any plants living more than one year, the 
plant is kept in a vigorous condition that enables it to 
store up vitality for the following crop. In Ohio it 
has been demonstrated that spraying can easily advance 
the value of the apple crop $20 per acre ; and in many 
states it has been shown that spraying is the salvation 
of the grape-grower. In Vermont it has been demon- 
strated that the potato crop can be increased more than 
100 bushels per acre by spraying, while in New York 
it proves equally profitable to the nurseryman. In 
California, fruit-growers generally have adopted it with 
very gratifying results. Mr. D. W. Coquillett records 
an instance where a pear-grower actually lost $2,000 
one season because he neglected to spray to prevent 
codling moth attack. At the Cornell Experiment 
Station an increase in cash value of $1 a barrel on 
sprayed over unsprayed apples was obtained. There 



44 Spraying Crops 

are many secondary profits in spraying besides the 
prevention of actual damage. The fruit becomes 
much larger in size ; consequently the yield is greatly 
increased, as is also the market value of the product. 
The same is true of potatoes. The keeping qualities 
are also very much improved, — an item of great practi- 
cal importance. And according to Mr. B. T. Galloway, 
the application of Bordeaux mixture has on many 
plants the effect of a tonic, irrespective of its fungicidal 
value. 

Spraying and the Weather 

According to Professor J. B. Smith, spraying with 
the arsenites alone " should not be done in the middle 
of a very hot day, nor, if it can be avoided, on a very 
hot sultry day. A hot sun on recently sprayed foliage 
will bring out all the caustic property in the poison 
applied, and will cause injury. After the moisture has 
evaporated and only the thin film of dry poison remains, 
the sun does not act further on it. On a cool day, 
spray at any hour. On a hot day spray during the 
early morning or late in the afternoon." 

Frequent rains often occur during the spraying 
season, and fruit-growers are sometimes tempted to 
defer operations till dry weather, but according to the 
experience of Mr. W. J. Green, it is better, in the case 
of the Bordeaux mixture at least, " to keep the work 
going than to wait for dry weather. Of course it would 
be impracticable to spray during a rain-storm, nor 
would it be best to spray immediately before, but if 



Pruning Trees 45 

the mixture has two or three hours in which to dry 
before a rain, it will adhere so closely that but little of 
it will be washed off. Much of it will remain for weeks, 
even during rainy weather." 

Spraying Trees in Blossom 

It is commonly believed that spraying trees in blos- 
som, in case the arsenites are used, endangers the lives 
of the bees visiting the blossoms. In some regions 
laws to prevent this have been enacted. Spraying at 
such times seems unnecessary, and intelligent fruit- 
growers would not practise it. The bees are essential to 
the production of fruit, and there is no excuse for 
destroying them. 

Pruning Trees 

To use the spraying machine to best advantage the 
orchard should be carefully and intelligently pruned. 
On this point Mr. E. G. Lodeman writes 1 : " The pruning 
and spraying of fruit trees are two subjects which are 
closely related. This is especially true in the case of 
the apple. Moisture is favorable to the development 
of the apple-scab fungus. When the tops of trees 
consist of a tangled mass of large and small branches, 
they are much longer in drying out than when they are 
open. Not only is a shelter given to fungi, but their 
growth is encouraged, and each tree becomes the dis- 
tributing center of some disease. The mischief is also 
aggravated by the fact that it is as difficult for any 

1 Cornell University Experiment Station, Bulletin 48. 



46 Spraying Crops 

remedies to gain an entrance, as it is for the light and 
air. It is impossible to spray such trees to advantage, 
even granting that the fruit borne by them would war- 
rant the expense. The head of the tree should be 
open, so that all parts may be reached easily with the 
spray." The presence of these useless branches also 
requires the application of much more of the spraying 
compound than is otherwise necessary, thus involving 
a decided waste of time and material. By all means 
prune your orchards properly before you spray them. 

In planting new orchards the trees should be set so 
far apart that when full-grown they may easily be 
sprayed. They should not be nearer together than 
40 or 42 feet each way. 

A Spraying Calendar 

Dr. Wm. C. Sturgis of the Connecticut Experiment 
Station, has published the following provisional calen- 
dar of the spraying operations for the year. As the 
author says, it is of course impossible to give accurate 
dates for various sprayings, on account of the difference 
in latitudes and seasons. But the dates are approxi- 
mate, and the calendar has a decided value. 

January and February. fc ' But little can be done 
during these midwinter months in the way of spraying, 
though a great deal by way of preparation. If it has 
not already been done at the proper time, cut out and 
burn the black knot of plum and cherry now, and destroy 
all neighboring wild cherry trees which are knotty. In 
the latter part of February do all necessary trimming 



A Spraying Calendar 47 

of vines and fruit trees, unless this has been done in the 
autumn. Where anthracnose has previously attacked 
grapevines, raspberries, or blackberries, prune severely, 
cut out every trace of diseased wood or cane and burn 
ft * * # i n open winters, February is none too early 
to go over the orchard carefully and collect and burn 
all leaves and fruit from diseased trees, such as mummi- 
fied cherries, plums, and peaches, scabby or rotted pears 
and quinces, and all blighted leaves. Remember that 
on the first warm day the air will be full of the germs 
of plant diseases from these fruits and leaves, if they 
are not destroyed. Do not use them for bedding or 
mulch, and do not throw them into the pig-pen. 

March. — The middle or end of this month will see 
everything ready for winter treatment (copper sulphate, 
1 lb. to 25 gals, of water). Select a warm day, or if 
possible, several days of warm, melting weather. In 
some seasons winter treatment can hardly be made 
before April. This treatment is especially good for 
diseases of apple, pear, and quince, for anthracnose 
and for the black rot of grapes. Where the latter has 
occurred the previous year, ploughing between the 
rows, in order to cover up diseased berries, will be 
found of great advantage. 

April. — Put all spraying apparatus in thorough order. 
Clean and rinse pumps, oil all bearings, see that the 
valves work well, and test the tubing for leaks. If the 
winter treatment has been deferred until this month, 
see that it is finished before the middle of the month. 

May. — This is usually the flowering month for vines 



48 Spraying Crops 

and fruit trees, and the first application of Bordeaux 
mixture or other fungicide should immediately precede 
the opening of the flowers. Use your own judgment. 
Apples are generally in bloom by the second week in 
May; quinces, pears, and grapes usually not until 
somewhat later. The importance of these early treat- 
ments can hardly be over-estimated. Watch to see 
when the petals begin to fall; and make a second 
application within a few days of that date. 

June. — The first part of June usually marks the fall 
of the flowers of most fruit trees. Never spray while 
trees and vines are in full bloom. Make the second 
application as soon as the petals have fallen. This will 
be late in May or early in June, for apples ; a week or 
ten days later for other fruit trees and grapes. Make 
the June treatment thorough. # # # -A good general 
rule to follow after the second spraying is to let each 
additional treatment be made from ten days to three 
weeks after the preceding one ; the shorter interval if 
there are heavy washing rains ; the longer if the weather 
is comparatively dry. 

July. — This month will close the treatment for most 
diseases. To avoid the spotting of grapes by the Bor- 
deaux mixture, the two applications during the latter 
part of this month should consist of the ammoniacal 
solution of copper carbonate. Early in the month 
spray for black rot of quinces, and continue treatment 
every two weeks until the last of August. 

August. — The spraying season closes this month. 
For leaf-blight of strawberries, mow the leaves late in 



Spraying Precautions 49 

July or early in August, and after allowing them to dry 
where they lie, set fire to them and burn the bed over. 
Thoroughly clean and oil all spraying apparatus, and 
see that it is carefully stored. 

September^ October, and November. — The months of 
harvest. When picking fruit let one or two boys follow 
and clean the trees of all diseased and mummified fruit, 
collecting it in baskets to burn. At the same time 
gather and burn, as far as possible, all diseased fruit 
which has fallen. In November clean the orchard 
thoroughly of fallen leaves, especially if disease has 
been prevalent, and burn them. Better to destroy 
them now than in the spring, when the fungus fruit 
will have come to maturity in and on the leaves. 

December. — The black knot fungus matures during 
December and January ; attack it early in the former 
month. Use the pruning knife unsparingly, cutting 
out two or three inches above and below each knot. 
Burn every knot and paint the wound over at once." 

Spraying Precautions 

The man who uses a spraying-machine assumes a 
responsibility which he has no right to neglect. Some 
precautions to be taken are indicated below. 

Always label all poisonous preparations in plain large 
letters, POISON. Never leave poisonous compounds 
within the ?'each of children, ignorant persons, or domestic 
animals. Never spray trees in blossom. 

In using a compound with which you have had no 
experience, and which is reported as at all liable to 



50 Spraying Crops 

injure foliage, itse only weak mixtures, and, if possible, 
try its effects first on a s?nall scale. 

If possible own a spraying-pump yourself. If you 
have to wait to borrow your neighbor s, the chances are 
that you will begin too late. 

Spray in time ; begin early ; do not wait until the 
horse is stole?i and then try to lock the door by spraying. 

Do not spray indiscriminately , anything and everything. 
Adapt your means to your ends. Study the enemies of 
your crops and then fight them intelligently. 

Of two mixtures equally effective, choose the one least 
liable to injure foliage. Take the trouble to add a little 
lime to arsenite mixtures. 

Never spray ripening fruit. 

Always remember that spraying requires the exercise 
of skill, judgment^ and knowledge, to get the best results. 



PART I 



SPRAYING THE LARGER FRUITS 




Plate ii.— Transformations of the Tent Caterpillar. 



THE APPLE 



Insect Enemies of the Trunk and Branches 

A piece of bark covered with the scales of the 
Oyster-shell Bark-louse is represented in Fig. n. 




Fig. ii. Oyster-shell Bark-louse 

If one of these scales be raised early in the spring, 
there will be found beneath it a mass of yellowish or 
whitish eggs, which hatch about the middle of May 
into small lice, that appear as mere specks to the 
naked eye. These move about over the bark a few 
days, when they fix themselves upon it, inserting their 
tiny beaks far enough to reach the sap. Here they 
continue to increase in size, and by the end of the 
season have secreted scaly coverings. 

Remedies. — During the winter and early spring 
scrape the trunk and larger branches with a hoe, and 
then thoroughly scrub with a scrub-brush dipped in a 
solution made by adding one part of crude carbolic 
acid to seven parts of a solution made by dissolving 
one quart of soft soap, or one fourth of a pound of 



54 Spraying Crops 

hard soap, in two quarts of boiling water. Then in 
May or June, soon after the young lice have hatched, 
spray with kerosene emulsion. When the lice are 
young they are very readily destroyed by this sub- 
stance. 

There are frequently found on the limbs and trunks 
of young apple trees, masses of a white, woolly sub- 
stance, beneath which are small, yellowish plant-lice. 
This is the Woolly Aphis. There are two forms of 
the insect, one attacking the roots, the presence of 
which may be easily detected by the knotty appearance 
of the infested rootlets, and one attacking the limbs 
and trunk. Like other aphides, these insects multiply 
rapidly during the summer months, by giving birth to 
living young. They injure the tree by sucking out its 
sap through their tiny beaks. They are especially liable 
to infest young trees, or those which are unhealthy. 

Remedies. — When on the trunk and limbs spray 
with kerosene emulsion ; on roots apply hot water, or 
kerosene emulsion, or dig in refuse tobacco powder 
and stems. 

Insect Enemies of the Fruit 

The insects affecting the fruit of the apple, which 
may be fought by spraying, are the Codling Moth, and 
the Plum and Apple Curculios. Of these, the Codling 
Moth or Apple Worm is the most destructive, and 
is, in fact, the most generally injurious apple insect. 
Its life history has already been described in the Intro- 
duction (page 10). 



The Apple 



55 



The Apple Curculio is a small, dull-brown, hard- 
shelled beetle, with a long snout and four peculiar 
warts on its back, as shown in Fig. 12 — c being a 
magnified view of the beetle's back, b, a similar view 
of its side, and a representing its natural size. The 
beetles drill holes in young apples, both for food and 
the deposition of eggs. The latter are laid at the 
bottom of the cavity, and soon hatch into grubs or 
larvae that feed upon the 
pulp of the fruit. They 
usually penetrate to the 
core, where they con- 
tinue feeding four or 
five weeks, when they 
become full grown and 
pupate within the cavity 
of the apple. Two or a b c 

three weeks later they Fig. 12. Apple Curculio. Magnified. 

emerge as perfect beetles, which pass the winter under 
boards or rubbish. The fruit attacked by this pest 
becomes dwarfed, gnarly, and ill-shapen, as shown in 
Fig 13. Apples are often seriously injured by the 
Plum Curculio, which works in a way similar to the 
apple curculio. Its life-history is described on page 12. 
Remedies. — The injuries of these three insects, as 
well as of several others of minor importance, may be 
prevented by spraying with London purple or Paris 
green. Spray first as soon as the blossoms have all 
fallen, and again about ten days later. In localities 




56 



Spraying Crops 



where the curculios are very injurious, one or two. more 
mi ^^. sprayings m a y 

often be made 
to advantage at 
intervals of two 
weeks, especially 
on late varieties. 
It will pay to add 
||j§lg| lime to the spray- 
"f ing solution (see 
p. 20), unless the 

Apple injured by Curculio. 

arsenite is corn- 
Bordeaux mixture, which has the same 
saving effect. 

The poison is supposed to take effect in the case of 
the codling moth by destroying the young larvae just 
after hatching, and while attempting to nibble through 
the skin ; while with the curculios it takes effect upon 
the parent beetles, thus preventing the deposition of 
eggs. 

Insect Enemies of the Foliage 




Fig. 13. 
bined with 



A large variety of insects feed upon apple foliage. 
Many of them are caterpillars of moths, and are easily 
destroyed by spraying. Among the most injurious of 
these are the Canker Worms, of which we have two 
distinct species — the Fall Canker Worm and the 
Spring Canker Worm. The different stages of the 
former pest are illustrated in Fig. 4, page 14, where a 
resume of its life-history will be found. 



The Apple 



57 



The Tent Caterpillar is another insect that is 
often extremely destructive to apple foliage. This is 
the creature that constructs the silken tent-like nests 
so often seen in spring on the branching limbs of apple 
and wild cherry trees. Its life-history is as follows : 
The eggs are deposited during July in compact masses 
of 200 or 300 each upon the twigs (Plate II., e, c), and 
are covered with varnish (e). The following spring 
they hatch into caterpillars that feed upon the tender 
foliage and make a silken tent in a fork of the twigs. 
They become full grown in about six weeks (a, b). 




Apple Tree Flea-beetle. 



They then leave the tree and crawl about in search of 
a suitable shelter to pupate in. Having found this — 



58 Spraying Crops 

beneath a board, or in the cracks of a fence — they spin 
an oval, silken cocoon (d), yellow when completed, 
within which they change to pupae. In two or three 
weeks the reddish-brown moths (/) come forth. These 
deposit the clusters of eggs, after which they soon die. 

There are a number of other caterpillars which feed 
upon apple foliage, notably several species of Leaf- 
rollers, the Yellow-necked Caterpillar, the Leaf- 
crumpler, the Leaf-skeletonizer, etc., all of which 
are treated of in the author's Insects and Insecticides, 
and all of which can be destroyed by spraying. The 
Apple-tree Flea-beetle (Fig. 14) is a small shining 
beetle that is often destructive in the West. Spraying 
with the arsenites checks it. 

Remedies. — As a rule, none of these insects will be 
injurious in an orchard that is regularly sprayed for the 
Codling Moth, because such spraying destroys them as 
well. It occasionally becomes necessary in unsprayed 
orchards infested by Canker Worms to spray very early, 
even before the trees blossom, to destroy the young 
worms. In case of serious outbreaks of leaf-eating 
caterpillars it is sometimes well to increase the propor- 
tion of poison, but it should never be less than one 
pound to 125 gallons of water, and even then lime 
should be added. 

The Apple Aphis. — During spring the leaves and 
tender twigs of apple are often covered with small 
green lice or aphides. These are the Apple Aphis. 
They injure the trees by sucking the sap through their 
tiny beaks. The lice hatch from eggs in spring as 



The Apple 59 

soon as the leaf -buds begin to expand, and they increase 
with marvelous rapidity, so that almost as fast as the 
leaves develop there are colonies of the plant-lice to 
occupy them. They breed on apple until July, when 
they largely leave the trees, and migrate apparently to 
the roots of grasses. Here they continue breeding until 
autumn, when they return to apple, and the winged 
females establish colonies of the wingless, egg-laying 
form upon the leaves. The small, oval eggs are now 
laid on the twigs and buds, and the cycle for the year 
is complete. 

Remedy. — Spray with kerosene emulsion as soon in 
spring as the eggs hatch — usually before the leaves 
expand. 

The opening buds of apples are sometimes seriously 
injured by the larva of the Eye-spotted Bud-moth. 
This is a small cylindrical worm, three-fourths of an 
inch long, which lives in a rude case made by fastening 
particles of dead leaves together with silk. It attacks 
the buds, blossoms, and newly-formed fruit as well as 
the leaves, and becomes full-grown early in June. 
The larvae then pupate within their cases, and in a few 
weeks emerge as small gray moths, with two little eye- 
spots on each of the front wings. 

Remedies. — This is a difficult pest to contend with, 
and the most promising remedy is to spray early, 
before the buds fully open, with a combination of Paris 
green and the Bordeaux mixture, continuing the treat- 
ment later as recommended below. 



60 Spraying Crops 

Fungous Enemies 

Probably no fungous disease of fruit is more familiar 
to the general public than the Apple Scab, or, as it is 
occasionally called, the Black Spot. This is due to a 
fungus which produces the well-known scabby spots 
upon the fruit, and also attacks the leaves and green 
shoots. It first appears on the leaves in the shape of 
smoky, greenish spots, more or less circular in outline. 
These gradually enlarge, and frequently several of 
them run together, so as to form good-sized blotches ; 
and as they grow older their color darkens, finally 
becoming almost black. The upper surface of the 
leaf is generally the one infested. Immense numbers 
of spores are produced on these blackened spots of 
the leaf and fruit, forming most abundantly during 
cool, wet weather. By means of these spores the 
fungus reproduces itself ; they are carried from leaf to 
leaf and fruit to fruit by wind and rain, and, germinat- 
ing, start the disease in a new situation. The spores 
pass the winter on stored fruit, fallen leaves, etc., and 
in spring start the disease again. 

Remedies. — In spring, just before the leaf-buds 
open, spray thoroughly with the Bordeaux mixture, or 
else spray before the leaf buds begin to swell, with a 
simple solution of copper sulphate ; repeat the appli- 
cation of Bordeaux mixture a little later just before the 
blossoms open, adding Paris green if the bud-worm is 
present ; spray for the third time just after the blossoms 
have fallen, adding four ounces of London purple or 



The Apple 61 

Paris green to every barrel of Bordeaux mixture, in 
order to destroy the Codling Moth, larvae, and other 
insects as well as the scab ; ten days after this third 
application, spray again with the combination of Bor- 
deaux mixture and London purple or Paris green. 
Do not apply the Bordeaux mixture late in the season ; 
it is liable to injure the skin of the apple by giving it a 
rough and russet appearance. Fruit sprayed in this 
way is much larger and finer than that not sprayed. 

In southerly latitudes, orchardists are greatly troubled 
by another fungous disease, the Apple Rot, which 
attacks the maturing fruit, rotting it and causing serious 
losses. Experiments in Kentucky by Professor Gar- 
man have shown that this disease may be prevented 
by treatment with Bordeaux mixture similar to that 
indicated above. 



THE PLUM 



Insect Enemies of the Fruit 

The Plum Curculio is by far the worst insect foe 
of the plum. It is the cause of most of the common 
worminess and premature dropping of the fruit. An 
account of its life-history will be found on page 12. 

Remedies. — The evidence in hand indicates that 
spraying with the arsenites is the best way to light this 
pest, especially in orchards of considerable size. This 
remedy acts by destroying the adult beetles rather than 
the larvae. The trees should be sprayed three or four 
times, at intervals of ten days or two weeks, beginning, 
as soon as the blossoms have fallen, with Paris green 
mixed with water in the proportion of three ounces to 
forty or fifty gallons. These sprayings will also destroy 
certain other insects affecting the fruit, although it is 
generally supposed that they will not kill the Plum 
Gouger — an insect related to the curculios — which is 
very injurious in some of the Western States. The 
best way will probably be to combine Paris green or 
London purple with the Bordeaux mixture as described 
under the next heading, and so fight both the insect 
and fungous pests at the same time. This is especially 
desirable because the arsenites alone are liable to 
injure the foliage when a series of applications are 
made. 



The Plu7n 63 

Fungous Enemies 

The Brown Rot of Stone-fruits is the most serious 
enemy under this heading. Fruit affected by this 
disease turns brown and rots, and generally develops 
on the skin a velvety or powdery brown coating. This 
coating consists of a great number of minute spores 
fastened together, end to end. If one of these velvety 
masses be shaken over a glass slide and the slide then 
put under a microscope, it will be seen that a great 
many of the spores have separated and fallen off. 
When one of these spores lights upon a green plum, 
peach, or cherry, and a drop of water happens to form 
over it, it sends out a germinating tube which penetrates 
the skin of the fruit, and once inside develops a mass 
of mycelium, disorganizing the tissues and causing rot. 
Then this mycelium develops a new mass of spores, 
and thus the fungus propagates itself. After the 
development of the spores, the plums or peaches dry 
up and hang on the limbs until the following season, 
when they start the disease again. Even the blossoms 
are often attacked. 

The first step towards preventing this disease is to 
pick off and burn the dry and mummied plums that 
hang on the trees over winter. These carry the dis- 
ease through cold weather and start it again in the 
spring. Rotting plums during the ripening period 
should also be promptly removed. 

During summer the leaves of plums and cherries are 
often injured by the Plum Leaf-Spot or Shot-hole 



64 



Spraying Ci'Ops 



Fungus, which first ap- 
pears in the shape of 
small dark purple spots 
scattered over the leaf. 
These spots soon be- 
come brown, and the 
leaf tissue composing 
them is dead. This 
dead tissue generally 
drops out of the leaf in 
course of a few weeks, 
leaving circular holes re- 
sembling shot holes. A 
microscopic examina- 
tion of the under sur- 
face of these spots gen- 
erally reveals one or 
more blackish points 
consisting of the fruit- 
ing spores of the fun- 
gus. It is by means of 
these that it passes the 
winter, and propagates 

Fig. 15. Diseased Plum Leaf. itself. The affected 

leaves often turn yellow and fall off. 

Remedies. — It has been definitely proven that these 
diseases can largely be prevented by spraying. A 
treatment similar to that recommended for apple-scab, 
one spraying with dilute Bordeaux mixture before 
blossoms open, then three sprayings with Bordeaux 




The Plum 65 

mixture and London purple after the fruit forms, is the 
most promising treatment for both insect and fungous 
pests. It may be necessary to make one or two late 
sprayings with a carbonate of copper solution in case 
rot sets in. The mummied plums should be picked off 
and burned in the winter ; and an early spring spray- 
ing with simple solution of copper sulphate, applied 
before the buds swell, is very beneficial. 



THE PEACH 



Insect Enemies of the Fruit 

The Plum Curculio, whose life-history has already 
been treated of on page 12, breeds in peaches, as well 
as in plums, cherries, apples, and other fruits. It is 
especially liable to injure peaches when there is a 
failure of the apple crop. It is more difficult to pre- 
vent its injuries on this crop than on the apple or plum, 
because ordinarily it is impracticable to jar peach 
trees, and their foliage is so easily injured by the ar- 
senites that spraying must be done with great caution. 
In using either Paris green or London purple on this 
fruit, lime should always be added to prevent injury to 
the foliage, or the arsenite may be used in combina- 
tion with Bordeaux mixture. 

Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

Peach foliage is occasionally attacked by the Red- 
legged Flea-beetle, a small jumping beetle which 
can be destroyed by spraying with the Paris green and 
lime mixture. 

There are two distinct species of aphides or plant- 
lice attacking the peach. Oue is called the Peach 
Aphis, and the other the Black Peach Aphis. The 
latter infests the roots and twigs as well as the leaves. 



The Peach 67 

Both species are soft, blackish little creatures that 
crowd together on the foliage and twigs. During the 
summer they reproduce viviparously, Spraying with 
kerosene emulsion, fish-oil soap, or tobacco decoction, 
as early as possible after the pests appear in spring, is 
the best remedy. The time to reach them easiest is 
when the buds are swelling, and the newly hatched lice 
are on the bare twigs. 

Fungous Enemies 

The Brown Rot, already discussed as a plum disease 
(page 63), is often extremely destructive to peaches. 
It sometimes attacks the trees early in spring, causing 
an injury to the twigs and blossoms called blight, and 
again infests the fruit up to the time of ripening, and 
even after it is gathered. 

The most promising remedial measures are those of 
picking off all the dry peaches hanging on the tree dur- 
ing winter, and then spraying early in the spring, be- 
fore the buds begin to swell, with simple solution of 
copper sulphate. Then when the buds begin to swell 
spray with a dilute Bordeaux mixture, which may often 
be repeated to advantage just before the blossoms open. 
Then after the blossom petals have fallen spray twice 
with an interval of two weeks between. Peach foliage 
is very easily injured, and care should be taken in 
spraying it. 



THE PEAR 



Insect Enemies of the Fruit 

The fruit of the pear is attacked by both the Cod- 
ling Moth and Plum Curculio. The injury of the 
latter causes it to be knotty, gnarly, and one-sided, 
ruining it for market purposes. Fortunately the in- 
juries of both may be prevented by two or three spray- 
ings with Paris green mixed with water at the rate of 
one ounce to twelve gallons. The first application 
should be made as soon as the petals have fallen, and 
the others at intervals of ten days or two weeks. Add 
lime to the mixture, unless the Bordeaux mixture com- 
bination is used. 

Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The leaves of pear, cherry, quince, and plum trees 
are frequently attacked during June and July by a 




Fig. 16. Pear-tree Slug. 

greenish-black, slimy slug that eats the upper surface. 
This is the Pear-tree Slug. The adult is a four- 



The Pear 



6 9 



winged black fly that deposits eggs in the leaf early in 
summer. The eggs soon hatch into larvae which be- 
come full-grown (Fig. 16) in four or five weeks. They 
then shed their slimy skin, appearing in a clean yellow 
one, and soon descend to the ground which they enter 
two or three inches, and pupate in oval cocoons.. A 
fortnight later the fly emerges. These larvae are 
easily destroyed by spraying with hellebore or the ar- 
senites. 

In a number of the Eastern states a small insect, 
the Pear Psylla, has recently caused 
serious damage by sucking the sap 
from the leaves. The insects pass the 
winter as adults, and in early spring 
deposit eggs on the bark especially 
about the buds. About a fortnight 
later they hatch into young — called 
nymphs — which suck the sap from 
the petioles of the leaves and stems 
of the young fruit. Recent experi- 
ments have shown that the young Fig. 17. Pear Psylla. 
, Mil ■> ■, Magnified. 

nymphs may easily be destroyed by 
spraying with kerosene emulsion. 

Fungous Enemies 

The Pear Leaf-blight is the most destructive 
fungous disease of the pear for which the spraying- 
machine may be successfully used. It occurs both on 
the foliage and fruit; on the former causing small, 
discolored spots, and on the latter producing a very 




70 Spraying Crops 

injurious cracking of the skin. It appears soon after 
the leaves develop, in the shape of small dull-red spots 
on the upper surface ; then the lower surface becomes 
spotted, and the spots gradually change to a dark brown 
color with black specks in the middle. The affected 
portions enlarge, and finally the whole leaf becomes 
diseased and falls off. (Plate i.) The red spots also 
appear upon the fruit ; the skin becomes much roughened 
and finally splits open in long cracks. 

Remedies. — Spray early in April before buds swell 
with the simple solution of copper sulphate ; then later 
with the ammoniacal solution of carbonate of copper as 
soon as leaves begin to unfold, and repeat application 
two or three times at intervals of two weeks ; or the 
dilute Bordeaux mixture may be used, spraying once 
before blooming and twice afterward. If more than two 
applications df the Bordeaux mixture are made after 
blooming, there is danger of giving the fruit a russet 
appearance. In case of early pears only one applica- 
tion should be made after blooming. If late applica- 
tions are made the copper carbonate or some similar 
fungicide should be used. The effect of treatment 
with the Bordeaux mixture, as shown in one of Mr. 
Galloway's experiments, is illustrated in Plate i. 
(Frontispiece.) 

By adding Paris green to the Bordeaux mixture, or 
using the copper-arsenic solution, both insects and 
fungous injuries will be prevented. 

Pear trees, especially older ones in southern latitudes, 
as well as apple trees, are often largely covered with 



The Pear 71 

Lichens of various kinds. Recent experiments by 
Mr. M. B. Waite show that these are destroyed by 
spraying with the Bordeaux mixture. 

The Quince is subject to the leaf-blight above 
discussed as a pear pest, and to various other diseases. 
As a general rule, it should receive treatment similar 
to that given the pear. 



THE CHERRY 



Insect Enemies of the Fruit 

The Plum Curculio, which has already been dis- 
cussed under The Plum (p. 62), is also exceedingly 
injurious to cherries. The latter, however, usually do 
not fall off when infested by the curculio larvae, but 
remain on the tree until the fruit ripens. The remedial 
measures suggested in connection with the plum are 
equally applicable to this fruit. 

Some varieties of cherries, especially the early ones, 
are very susceptible to injury by arsenites, and London 
purple should not be used upon them unless lime is 
added to the solution. If Paris green alone is used 
apply at the rate of 2 ounces to 50 gallons of water. 
Do not spray early varieties more than twice, or late 
ones more than three times. 

Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The twigs and under surface of the leaves of cherry 
trees are frequently thickly infested during May and 
June by small, shining black plant-lice, that suck out the 
sap and deform the leaves. This insect is the Cherry 
Aphis. It winters over on the twigs in the egg state. 
Early in spring the eggs hatch into young aphides that 
insert their tiny sap-sucking beaks into the unfolding 



The Cherry 73 

leaves. In a week or ten days they become full-grown, 
and give birth to young lice, which soon develop and 
repeat the process. In this way they increase with 
marvelous rapidity. Late in June or early in July they 
leave the cherry, migrating to some other plant. Here 
they develop throughout summer, and in autumn a 
winged brood again appears and migrates back to 
the cherry. These migrants give birth to young that 
develop into egg-laying females, which deposit small, 
oval, shining black eggs upon the twigs. 

Remedy. — Spray with kerosene emulsion. This can 
be done most easily and effectively early in spring, 
when the newly-hatched lice are crowded upon the 
bursting buds. 

The Pear-tree Slug, which has already been dis- 
cussed as a pear insect, is probably as destructive to 
cherry foliage as to that of the pear. Its life-history 
on the two fruits is similar, and the remedies are the 
same in both cases. 

Fungous Enemies 

The cherry is subject to much the same fungous 
diseases that the plum is. The leaves are attacked by 
the Shot-hole Fungus, and the fruit by Brown Rot. 
The remedial measures already suggested for these 
diseases are applicable here. 



THE ORANGE AND OTHER CITROUS 

FRUITS 



Insect Enemies 

The scale insects are among the most destructive 
insect enemies of citrous fruits. Recent researches 
have shown the " resin washes " to be satisfactory 
remedies to use against them, and Dr. C. V. Riley has 
published the following instructions for their prepara- 
tion and use : 

The Resin Washes. — " These insecticides act by 
contact, and also, in the case of scale-insects, by form- 
ing an impervious coating which effectually smothers 
the insects treated. These resin washes vary in effi- 
cacy, according to the insect treated. Experience has 
shown that the best formula for the red scale 
(Asp idiot us aurantii Maskell) and its yellow variety 
(A. citrinus Coquillet) is as follows : 

Resin pounds . iS 

Caustic soda (70 per cent, strength) do .5 

Fish oil pints . 2% 

Water to make gallons . 100 

" The necessary ingredients are placed in a kettle, and 
a sufficient quantity of cold water is added to cover them. 
They are then boiled until dissolved, being occasion- 



The Orange 7 5 

ally stirred in the meantime, and after the materials 
are dissolved the boiling should be continued for about 
an hour, and a considerable degree of heat should be 
employed, so as to keep the preparation in a brisk 
state of ebullition, cold water being added in small 
quantities whenever there are indications of the prep- 
aration boiling over. Too much cold water, however, 
should not be added at one time, or the boiling process 
will be arrested and thereby delayed, but by a little 
practice the operator will learn how much water to 
add so as to keep the preparation boiling actively. 
Stirring the preparation is quite necessary during this 
stage of the work. When boiled sufficiently it will 
assimilate perfectly with water, and should then be 
diluted with the proper quantity of cold water, adding 
it slowly at first and stirring occasionally during the 
process. The undiluted preparation is pale yellowish 
in color, but by the addition of water it becomes a 
very dark brown. Before being sprayed on the trees 
it should be strained through a fine wire sieve, or 
through a piece of Swiss muslin, and this is usually 
accomplished when pouring the liquid into the spray- 
ing tank, by means of a strainer placed over the open- 
ing through which the preparation is introduced into 
the tank. 

" The preparing of this compound will be greatly 
accelerated if the resin and caustic soda are first 
pulverized before being placed in the boiler, but this 
is quite a difficult task to perform. Both of these 
substances are put up in large cakes for the wholesale 



76 Spraying Crops 

trade, the resin being in wooden barrels, each barrel 
containing a single cake, weighing about 375 pounds, 
while the caustic soda is put up in iron drums contain- 
ing a single cake each, weighing about 800 pounds. 
The soda is the most difficult to dissolve, but this 
could doubtless be obviated by first dissolving it in 
cold water and then using the solution as required. 
This insecticide may be applied at any time during the 
growing season. 

" A stronger wash is required for the San Jose scale 
(Aspidiotus perniciosus Comstock), and the following 
formula gives the best results : 

Resin pounds . 30 

Caustic soda (70 per cent) .... do . q 

Fish oil ....... pints . 4% 

Water enough to make .... gallons . too 

" Place all the ingredients in a kettle and cover with 
water to a depth of four or five inches ; boil briskly for 
about two hours, or until the compound can be per- 
fectly dissolved with water. When this stage is 
reached the kettle should be filled up with water, care 
being taken not to chill the wash by adding large 
quantities of cold water at once. It may be thus 
diluted to about 40 gallons, the additional water being 
added from time to time as it is used. 

"This preparation should only be applied during 
winter or during the dormant period; applied in the 
growing season, it will cause the loss of foliage and 
fruit." 

Apply by means of a coarse spray. 



PART II 



SPRAYING SMALL FRUITS AND 
NURSERY STOCK 



'I l £2- Jk SR£ Tn-* «r\ \ 

p \T X 3^ H^H. O 






Plate III.— Strawberry Leaf Affected with Blight. 



THE STRAWBERRY 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The transformations of the Strawberry Slug have 
been well represented by Dr. Riley in Fig. 18. The 
four-winged fly (3) appears in spring, and deposits its 
eggs within the tissues of the leaf or stem. The lar- 
vae feed upon the leaf, gnawing small, circular holes at 




Fig. 18. Strawberry Slug : i, 2, pupa ; 3, 5, fly ; 4, 6, 
larva ; 7, cocoon ; 8, antenna ; 9, egg, magnified. 

first. They develop in five or six weeks into pale 
green worms (4, 6) about three fourths of an inch long. 
The larvae now go slightly beneath the surface, and 



80 Spraying Crops 

there they form cocoons (7) within which they change 
to the pupa state (1, 2), and later emerge as flies. In 
the southern states there are two broods each season, 
while at the North there appears to be but one. 

Remedies. — On the non-fruiting plantations it may 
be destroyed by spraying or dusting with hellebore or 
Paris green. On fruiting plantations this method may 
be used in localities where a second brood of larvae 
appears after the fruit is gathered. Pyrethrum or in- 
sect-powder may be used in such cases on the first 
brood. 

The Strawberry Leaf-roller is a small, brownish 
caterpillar that folds the leaflets of the strawberry by 
bringing the upper surfaces together and fastening 
them by silken cords (Fig. 19), and feeds upon their 
substance till they look brown and scorched. It 
hatches from eggs laid in spring upon the strawberry 
plants by a small reddish-brown moth. The larva 
attains its full growth in June, when it is nearly half an 
inch long, of a brown or greenish color, with a shining, 
yellowish-brown head. It pupates within the rolled 
leaf, and about midsummer emerges as a moth. These 
moths deposit eggs for a second brood, that feed upon 
the leaves late in summer, changing to pupae early in 
autumn ; and, passing the winter in that condition, 
emerge as moths the following spring. 

Remedies. — Mow the field soon after the crop is gath- 
ered, and after leaving it a day or two to become dry, 
burn it over. This destroys the leaf-rollers as well as 
several other kinds of insects, and the spores of fun- 



The Strawberry 81 

gous diseases. Scatter a little straw over the field 
where the leaves are not thick enough to burn well. 
The plants will not be damaged, but will soon send up 
a new lot of leaves that will grow rapidly, and be free 
from insect and fungous attack. If for any reason this 




Fig. 19. Strawberry leaf folded by Leaf-roller. 

method is not desirable, the insects of the second 
brood may be destroyed by spraying or dusting the 
plants in August with some poisonous insecticide. 

The foliage of strawberries is also attacked by cer- 
tain Strawberry Leaf-beetles, the parents of the 
Strawberry Root-worms. On young non-fruiting 
plantations, and on fruiting plantations after the crop 



82 Spraying Crops 

is gathered, these insects may be destroyed by spray- 
ing with Paris green or London purple. 

Fungous Enemies 

The Strawberry Leaf-blight is the most destruc- 
tive fungous enemy of this fruit. " The presence of 
the blight fungus," says Professor H. Garman, "is first 
marked by the appearance of small brown spots, 
varying from one sixteenth to one eighth inch. As they 
become abundant the spots fuse, forming extensive 
brown areas, and finally occupy the whole leaf. Event- 
ually most spots show at the upper side of the leaves a 
rim of dull purple of varying width. Towards fall this 
change in the color of the leaf is more prevalent. If 
one of the spots be cut through with a pair of fine 
scissors, the leaf will be found, at the point where the 
spot is formed, much thinner than elsewhere, because 
of the killing and drying out of its substance. Ex- 
amined under a microscope, the fungus may now be 
found to have pushed through the tissues of the leaf, 
and to have formed all over the brown central region 
of the spot, but most abundantly at its margins, small 
whitish tufts, looking like microscopic shrubs. These 
are the fruiting parts of the parasite, and are made up 
of numerous threads, each bearing at its summit a long 
jointed spore. As these latter ripen they are set free, 
and are scattered upon fresh leaves by winds and 
rains, to germinate there, push into the leaves, and 
form new spots." The fungus is propagated by these 
long spores throughout the summer, but in autumn the 



The Strawberry &$ 

threads of mycelium " form solid tissue-like masses in 
the dead parts of the spots," which finally appear at 
the surface as small black dots. By means of these 
dots or nodules the fungus passes the winter. A leaf 
affected by this disease is represented in Plate III. 
Remedies — During July and August spray with am- 
moniacal solution of copper carbonate, Bordeaux mix- 
ture, or eau celeste, at intervals of two weeks. Try 
mowing and burning foliage soon after fruit is gathered, 
and then spray as just directed. Mowing and burning 
at this time, without subsequent spraying, is believed to 
increase rather than diminish the blight, at least south- 
ward ; but mowing and burning may often be done to 
good advantage, at least in southerly latitudes, in 
autumn. 



THE CURRANT AND GOOSEBERRY 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The worst enemy of currant foliage is the Im- 
ported Currant Worm, Early in spring four- 
winged flies deposit rows of small, whitish, glassy, 
eggs on the principal veins of the under sides of the 
lower leaves. In about ten days the small worms 

hatch and eat cir- 
cular holes in 
the leaf. At first 
these larvae are 
whitish in col- 
or : they soon 
change to green, 
then to green 
with numerous 
black spots, and 
at last back 
again to a plain 
light green, with 
a tinge of yellow 

Fig. 20. Currant Worms Eating Leaves. a |- ^ e sides and 

ends (Fig. 20). The full-grown larvae spin tough brown 
cocoons, beneath the leaves and rubbish on the ground, 




The Currant and Gooseberry 



85 



within which they change to pupae. From these co- 
coons the flies emerge early in summer, to lay eggs for 
a second brood, which passes the winter within the 
cocoons. 

Remedy. — Spray with hellebore — one ounce to three 
gallons water — as soon as holes appear in lower leaves. 
Spray again ten days later. 

Currant leaves are often specked with white by the 
Currant Leaf-hopper, a small, pale-green insect, one- 
tenth inch long, that lives on the under side and sucks 
the sap. The chief damage is* done by the first brood, 




Fig. 21. Four-lined Leaf-Bug. 

the insects leaving the bushes in early summer, probably 
preferring at this time the more succulent foliage of 
other plants. 

Remedies. — Spray forcibly with pyrethrum or insect- 
powder — one ounce to three gallons water : or with 



86 Spraying Crops 

tobacco decoction. Begin early, before the insects get 
their wings. 

The foliage on the tips of currant and gooseberry 
stems is often blighted in spring by the Four-lined 
Leaf-bug, a small insect represented natural size and 
magnified in Fig. 21. The young appear early in spring 
and suck the sap from the unfolding leaves, causing 
them to wilt and appear blighted as in Fig. 22. 

Mr. M. V. Slingerland, who has studied this pest thor- 
oughly, finds that its eggs are laid in currant stems and 
pass the winter there. Consequently pruning the stems 



%*.*&* 





Fig. 22. Currant leaves killed by the insect. 

between September and April — burning the portions 
cut off — will be a partial preventive ; and spraying with 
kerosene emulsion early in the season, when the insects 



27ie Currant and Gooseberry 87 

are immature, will destroy many of them. The only 
other remedy suggested is that of jarring the pests into 
pans containing kerosene and water. 

The Currant Aphis is a small, yellowish insect 
found on the under sides of curled and blistered cur- 
rant leaves early in summer. Such leaves are generally 
tinged with reddish above. The insects apparently 
migrate to some other plant during the summer, return- 
ing to the currant in autumn, and depositing small, 
black eggs upon the stems, especially about the buds. 

Remedies. — On account of the deformed leaves, 
these insects are difficult to reach with insecticides. 
Spraying with kerosene emulsion quite early in the sea- 
son, before the foliage has expanded, is the best remedy. 

Fungous Enemies 

For many years it has been impracticable to grow 
foreign varieties of gooseberries in the United States, 
on account of the attacks of the Gooseberry Mildew. 
According to Dr. B. D. Halstead, this mildew " first 
makes its appearance upon the young half-grown leaves, 
and the unfolding terminal bud of the shoot. In its 
early stage it has a cobwebby appearance, which soon 
becomes white and powdery from the development of 
the light summer spores. Soon after this, thin patches 
of the same character may be found upon the forming 
berries. Usually one side is more attacked than the 
other, and as the berry continues to grow it becomes 
one-sided or curved, because the fungus retards the 
development upon the infested side. If the berry is 



88 Spraying Crops 

entirely covered, its further development is generally 
checked. Later in the season the leaves, and espe- 
cially their petioles, and the young stems bearing them, 
turn to a rusty-brown color, and become thickly coated 
with the fungus. The berries at the same time are 
covered with brown patches of mycelium, which may 
readily be peeled off from the smooth skin of the fruit." 
Remedies. — Spray with a solution of potassium sul- 
phide (liver of sulphur) at the rate of one half ounce to 
one gallon water. Begin as soon as the leaves com- 
mence unfolding, and repeat the application at inter- 
vals of eighteen to twenty days. The sulphide dissolves 
more readily in hot than in cold water. This treat- 
ment has proven entirely efficacious for a number of 
years at the New York experiment station. Early in 
the season the Bordeaux mixture may be used instead 
of the sulphide if more convenient, and it is desirable 
to spray with Bordeaux mixture after the fruit is gath- 
ered, to prevent the various spot-diseases, that often 
cause the foliage to drop off late in summer. 



THE GRAPE 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The Grape-vine Flea-beetle is a small, steel-blue 
beetle that is often very destructive to grape-vines. 
As soon in spring as the buds swell the beetles attack 
them, and continue feeding for three or four weeks, 
during the latter part of the time depositing small, 
orange-yellow eggs in clusters on the under sides of 
the leaves. The eggs hatch into small, dark-colored 
larvae that gnaw irregular holes in the leaves. When 
fully grown (three or four weeks after hatching), they 
are about 3-10 inch long, brown in color, with six legs, 
and four or five black dots on the back of each ring 
or segment of the body. The head is black, and there 
are numerous hairs on the body. They now enter the 
soil, pupate, and a few weeks later emerge as beetles, 
which feed upon the foliage and lay eggs for a second 
brood of larvae. 

Remedy.— Spray with Paris green or London purple 
(having a little lime added) at a strength of three or 
four ounces to fifty gallons water, as soon as beetles 
appear in spring ; or else with the arsenited Bordeaux 
mixture. 

The Rose Beetle, Rose Chafer, or Rose Bug 
feeds in the beetle state upon a great variety of trees 



Spraying Crops 




Fig. 23. Rose Chafer : a, larva ; b, 
pupa ; c, beetle. Slightly magnified. 



and plants, often being exceedingly injurious to the 
flowers or foliage of apples, pears, plums, peaches, 
roses, raspberries, blackberries, grapes, and other plants. 
The adult (Fig. 23, c) appears early in summer, about 

the time grapes blossom, 
and feeds upon the flow- 
ers, foliage, or fruit of 
the plants already men- 
tioned. The females de- 
posit thirty or more eggs 
an inch or so beneath 
the soil surface. In two 
or three weeks the grubs 
hatch and feed upon the roots of grass, and possibly 
other plants, and become fully grown (a) in autumn. 
As winter approaches they go deeper into the soil, 
coming to the surface again in spring, and making 
for themselves rude earthen cells in which they change 
to pup^e (b). Three or four weeks later they again 
change, and the perfect beetles come forth. 

Remedies. — In regions where the beetles are not 
overwhelmingly abundant, thorough spraying of grape- 
vines and fruit-trees with a wash made by adding three 
or four pecks of freshly-slaked lime, and a quart of 
crude carbolic acid to fifty gallons of water, has been 
reported by several fruit-growers to be successful, 
although on the other hand, some who have tried it in 
a smaller way say it did little or no good. A better 
method which has been reported successful in Rhode 
Island, is to spray the buds before the blossoms open — 



The Grape 91 

in the state named the spraying was done the first 
week in June — with 1 lb. Paris green to 50 gallons 
Bordeaux mixture. In parts of New Jersey, hand-pick- 
ing has been resorted to as the only sure method of 
extermination, the insects being collected in the cooler 
hours of the day. They may be destroyed also by hot 
water, provided it is hot enough when it touches them. 
On the whole the arsenited Bordeaux mixture seems 
the most promising remedial measure for most localities, 
where the beetles are not overwhelmingly abundant. 

Fungous Enemies 

The Black Rot of grapes has long been recognized 
as the most destructive fungous disease which Ameri- 
can vineyardists have encountered. Generally the 
fungus first appears in the shape of round, reddish- 
brown spots on the grape leaves. About a fortnight 
later the attack on the berries will be noticed. The 
effect on these is most disastrous : as the mycelium 
develops among the cells of the fruit the berries stop 
growing, and finally become disorganized, shapeless, 
juiceless masses, shriveled to one half their proper 
size and fit only to develop the spores of the destroy- 
ing fungus. And they do produce these spores, which 
are massed together in little black pustules scattered 
over the surface of the withered skin. 

This Black Rot fungus is most destructive in south- 
ern latitudes. As far north as northern Ohio and 
western New York it is much less virulent than in 
Tennessee or the Carolinas. Like most fungous dis- 



92 Spraying Crops 

eases it develops with greatest rapidity during damp, 
hot weather, or when nights with heavy dews alternate 
with hot days. 

Remedies. : — Spray with the ammoniacal solution of 
copper carbonate, or the Bordeaux mixture, five to eight 
times, making the first application early in May, and 
repeating at intervals of fifteen days. In case Bor- 
deaux mixture is used, substitute the ammoniacal 
solution for the last one or two sprayings, to avoid 
spotting the fruit. 

An account of the development of the Downy Mil- 
dew or Brown Rot of grapes has already been given in 
the Introduction (pp. 16-18). This disease has been, 
in years past, extremely destructive over a wide area ; 
and it attacks disastrously both the foliage and fruit. 
In southern latitudes it is said to be most injurious to 
the former. 

Remedies. — Eau Celeste is a practical and efficient 
preventive of this disease. Spray first a week or ten 
days before the vines blossom ; second, as soon as the 
berries are well set ; and third, about three weeks later. 
In very wet seasons it may be desirable to spray a 
fourth time, but this is seldom done. The dilute Bor- 
deaux mixture may also be used. 



THE RASPBERRY 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The Raspberry Slug is the larva of a four-winged 
black fly with a reddish abdomen, which deposits eggs 
during spring in the leaf. They hatch into small, 
whitish worms that feed upon the tender foliage, and 
in a few weeks become full-grown. They are then y^- 
inch long, of a dark green color, and have the body 
thickly covered with spinose tubercles. The slugs 
now descend to the ground, and construct rather firm 
cocoons slightly beneath the soil surface. They remain 
in these cocoons until spring, when they come forth 
as flies. 

Remedy. — Spray the infested bushes with powdered 
hellebore. Use from one-half to one pound of hellebore 
to fifty gallons of water, and apply forcibly, as soon as 
the worms appear. 

Fungous Enemies 

The Anthracnose or Cane-rust of the raspberry 
is one of the most vexatious diseases with which the 
fruit-grower has to contend. Infested canes are char- 
acterized by having numbers of peculiar, grayish, 
depressed spots upon the surface, the spots usually 
having a dark purple margin. This injury is accom- 



94 Spraying Crops 

panied by a splitting or cracking of the bark, which 
becomes deeper as the cane ripens, and finally extends 
nearly to the pith. The spores are developed usually 
in the central portions of the spots, appearing to the 
unaided eye as yellowish elevations. Canes so attacked 
become dwarfed and worthless. 

Remedy. — The raspberry is very sensitive to the 
corrosive action of fungicides, and it must be sprayed 
with care. Recent experiments at the Ohio Station 
indicate that the dilute Bordeaux mixture may be used 
to advantage against this disease, although it is not a 
complete remedy. Apply once before the leaves come 
out, and two or three times afterward, though not after 
the blossoms open. " Care should be taken to direct 
the spray to the young growth, and avoid the old canes 
after the first application." 



NURSERY STOCK 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The leaves of young apple trees are frequently rolled 
together at the tips of the terminal twigs by a greenish 
yellow, slightly hairy worm about half an inch long. 
This is the Lesser Apple Leaf-roller. Its life- 
history is as follows : The eggs are laid in spring on 
the leaves of apple and other plants, the larvae soon 
hatching to devour the foliage, some of which they 

roll into a protective 
covering. Here they 
feed for about a month, 
when they pupate with- 
in the folded leaves, and 
a week or so later em- 
erge as small, orange- 
yellow moths. These 
moths lay eggs for an- 
other brood of larvae, 
the imagos from which 
appear in August, being also of the same orange color. 
These in turn lay eggs for a third brood of worms, 
which develop during September, and emerge during 
October as glistening reddish-gray moths, which pass 
the winter in rubbish heaps and fence corners, and 
deposit eggs the following spring. 




Fig. 24. Lesser Leaf-roller : a, larva 
b, pupa : c, moth : d, rolled leaf 



9 6 



Spraying Crops 



One often finds during winter, upon the twigs of 
nursery trees, masses of dry brown leaves, that, when 
pulled apart, are seen to surround a long, tubular, 
horn-like case. These cases contain a brownish worm 
or caterpillar, about half an inch long. This is the 
Leaf-crumpler, and it often becomes one of the most 
injurious of nursery pests. The parent is a small 
grayish moth (Fig. 25, d) that deposits its eggs during 

June and July on 
apple, quince, and 
other trees. These 
eggs soon hatch 
into small brown- 
ish worms that 
construct tubular, 
silken cases (a) 
within which they 
remain concealed 
when not eating. 
As they grow larg- 
er they draw about 
the openings of 
their abodes many 
partially eaten 
leaves, so that by 
autumn there is 
quite a bunch surrounding each case (p). At the ap- 
proach of cold weather the cases are attached to twigs 
by silken threads, and thus the winter is passed. As 
soon as the leaves appear the larvae attack them, fre- 




6 

Fig. 25. Leaf-crumpler : a, larval case 
val case with dead leaves ; c, front 
larva ; d, moth, magnified. 



, Im- 
part of 



Nursery Stock 



97 



quently eating out the flower buds as well. They feed 
until June, when they pupate within the cases. A 
fortnight later the moths emerge. 

The Apple Leaf-skeletonizer is a brownish or 
greenish larva, which spins a web upon the upper sur- 
face of the leaf, and eats the parenchyma, giving the 
foliage a scorched appearance. The larvae hatch 

from eggs laid late in 
spring by a little moth, 
and as they grow older 
they spin a slight pro- 
tective silken web on 
the upper surface of the 
leaf, beneath which they 
feed. When full grown 
(a) they vary from an 
olive or pale green col- 
or to brown, are about 
half an inch long, and 
have four black shining 
tubercles on the back, 
just behind the head. 
About midsummer they pupate in slight cocoons, and 
two weeks later the moths emerge. Eggs are laid 
by these moths for the second brood of larvae, which 
when hatched hibernate in thin cocoons. 

Remedies. — All three of these pests are open to 
destruction by spraying with arsenites. In regions 
where the Powdery Mildew is injurious as well as 
these, a combination treatment may be employed, 




Fig. 26. Leaf-skeletonizer ; a, larva ; b, 
part of back, magnified to show mark- 
ings ; c, head and front part of larva, 
magnified; d t moth, magnified. 



98 Spraying Crops 

adding five or six ounces of London purple or Paris 
green to each barrel of Bordeaux mixture. Where 
fungicide treatment is not necessary, spray with arsen- 
ites and lime (adding the lime to prevent injury to the 
young and tender foliage, as explained in the introduc- 
tion, p. 20) whenever either of the insects threaten 
injury, — the earlier the better. 

Fungous Enemies 

There are atleast^three fungous diseases of young 
nursery trees to prevent which spraying pays. They 
are : (1) the Pear Leaf-blight, which affects a quince 
as well as pear stocks ; (2) the Powdery Mildew, 
which occurs upon apple and cherry, and (3) the Leaf- 
blight or Leaf-spot of the plum and cherry. 

According to Mr. B. T. Galloway, the body or vege- 
tative system of the Pear Leaf-blight consists of 
very minute, short, colorless filaments, which grow 
between and through the delicate cells of the leaf, 
" destroying all the latter with which it comes in con- 
tact, and using their nourishment for building up its 
own structure. As a result of this process, the leaf 
shows, here and there on the surface, small, more or 
less circular, dark brown spots ; these spots rapidly 
enlarge, and by running together soon cause the entire 
leaf to turn brown and then fall off. Before the latter 
takes place, however, a close examination of the 
diseased spots will reveal numerous little black specks; 
these contain the spores or reproductive bodies of the 
fungus, which escape by rupturing the cuticle of the 
leaf with which they are covered. Under proper con- 



Nursery Stock 99 

ditions of moisture and heat the spores germinate, and 
if this takes place on a pear leaf, the germ tube bores 
its way into the tissues, soon develops into colorless 
filaments, like those already described, and these in 
turn give rise to more spores." The fungus passes the 
winter by means of the late summer spores which 
remain attached to the fallen leaves. 

Remedy. — " Spray first with the Bordeaux mixture 
when the leaves are about two-thirds grown; then fol- 
low with other applications of the same preparation at 
intervals of about twelve days, until five or six spray- 
ings in all have been made." (Galloway.) 

The fungus of the Apple Powdery Mildew differs 
materially from the species affecting pear leaves just 
discussed. " Its vegetative system," says Mr. Gallo- 
way, " instead of growing on the inside of the host is 
almost wholly external, and obtains its nourishment by 
means of suckers which it sends into the cells of the 
leaf or stem as the case may be. It covers the various 
parts of the plant with a grayish, powdery, meal-like 
growth — hence the name Powdery Mildew." 

Remedies. — " Spray the seedlings with the ammoni- 
acal solution or copper carbonate, first when the 
leaves are about half grown, and thereafter at inter- 
vals of 12 days. Following this plan three sprayings 
will usually be made before budding, and at least two 
after this operation, making five in all." (Galloway.) 
Or the Bordeaux mixture may be used. 

The Leaf-blight of the plum and cherry may be 
prevented by spraying with the Bordeaux mixture. 



IOO 



Spraying Crops 



Apply first when the leaves are one third grown. 
" Between this date and the time for budding three 
more applications should be made at as nearly regular 




Fig 27. Spraying for Plum Leaf-blight. 

intervals as possible. Ten days or two weeks after 
the buds are inserted make the fifth application, then 
follow with the sixth two weeks later." The effect of 
spraying plum stocks is well shown in Fig. 27, repro- 
duced from the Journal of Mycology. 



PART III 



SPRAYING SHADE-TREES, ORNA- 
MENTAL PLANTS, AND FLOWERS 




Plate IV. — Transformations of the Elm Leaf-beetle. 



SHADE TREES 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The Woolly Maple Bark-louse is often one of the 
most destructive shade-tree pests. Its presence is 
manifested in spring and early summer by the occur- 
rence upon the twigs of a brown, circular, leathery 
scale, about ^ inch in diameter, beneath which is a 
peculiar white, fluffy, cottony mass. In the spring 
there may be found, in each of these masses, great 
numbers (from 700 to 1,000) of small, white, spherical 
eggs. Early in summer these eggs hatch into young 
lice, which scatter over the trees, wandering about on 
the twigs and leaves for a few days, and, finally, fixing 
themselves upon the lower leaf surface, insert their tiny 
beaks and suck out the sap. They remain in this posi- 
tion several weeks, when a few of them become fully 
developed winged males. These mate with the remain- 
der, which are females, and soon die. But the females 
remain upon the leaves until nearly time for them to 
fall in autumn, when they desert them and migrate to 
the twigs, attaching themselves by inserting their beaks 
into the bark. Here they remain until spring, the eggs 
gradually developing. 

Remedy. — Spray infested trees in June, when the 
lice have just hatched, with kerosene emulsion. 



104 



Spraying Crops 



The twigs of deciduous and coniferous trees are often 
infested during winter by small bags or sacs (Fig. 28, *) 
suspended to the leaves or branches. If one of the 
larger of these bags be cut open, there will be found 
within it a brown, membranous shell (the pupa-case of 




Fig. 28. Bag-worm : a, larva ; b, male pupa ; c, female moth ; d, male 
moth ; e, bag and pupa-case cut open to show eggs ;/, full-grown larva 
with bag ; g, young larvae with their conical coverings. 

the moth) filled with many small, yellow eggs (<?). In 
this condition the Bag-worm or Basket-worm passes 
the winter. Late in spring the larvae hatch, and form 
little cases of fragments of leaves fastened together by 
silken threads. Beneath these cases (g) they feed 
upon the foliage, enlarging them as the larvae develop, 
and during later life using bits of twigs or stems in 
their construction. When fully developed, the worms 



Shade Trees 



io 5 



descend to the earth by means of silken threads, and 
crawl about until they reach the bases of other trees, 
which they ascend. This is the way the species mi- 
grates. The larvae pupate within the cases, and about 
three weeks later change to moths. The two sexes of 
the moths differ greatly, the male ( d) having well de- 
veloped wings, while the female (c) is wingless. The 
latter deposits her eggs in the empty pupa-case from 
which she has emerged, falls to the ground, and dies. 

Remedies. — Spray with London purple or Paris 
green early in summer when the worms are young. 

The larva of the White-marked Tussock-moth is 
one of the most beautiful of our caterpillars. If the 
trunks or larger limbs of maple, apple, elm, or any other 
of the trees infested by this insect, be examined in 
autumn or winter, one may find, scattered here and 




% 




Ml 

1 


^^^^l| 








1 




^^W'diw 








'1 



b 

Fig. 29. White-marked Tussock-moth : a, female moth on cocoon;^, 
young larva hanging by thread ; c, female pupa ; d , male pupa ; e, male 
moth. 

there upon the bark, thin gray cocoons, many of them 
being covered with large bunches of spherical white 
eggs fastened together by a protecting froth-like 



106 Spraying Crops 

mass. In May, soon after the leaves come out, these 
eggs hatch into small caterpillars, which feed upon the 
foliage, becoming full-grown in six or seven weeks. 
Their general color is bright yellow, with head and 
tubercles on rear of back red, and four cream colored 
tufts on back. About the middle of July the caterpil- 
lars spin thin, whitish cocoons upon the bark, and a 
fortnight later come forth as moths. These lay eggs 
for a second brood, which complete their transforma- 
tions before winter sets in. The male moth differs 
greatly from the female moth, the former being winged 
(Fig. 29, e), while the latter is wingless (a). The 
female crawls upon the top of the cocoon (a) as soon 
she emerges from the pupa state, where, after mating, 
she deposits her eggs in a single mass and dies. 

Remedies. — Spray trees as soon as caterpillars are 
noticed with Paris green or London purple. 

The work of few insects is more universally known 
than that of the Fall Web-worm. Late in summer and 
early in autumn the conspicuous, unsightly webs of this 
pest may be seen in nearly every orchard and hedgerow 
over a large portion of the United States. The adult 
is a pretty, white moth (Fig. 30, c\ which deposits eggs 
on the leaves of various trees early in summer. These 
soon hatch into young caterpillars that begin at once 
to spin a protective web. They feed upon the paren- 
chyma of the foliage, leaving the network of veins, and 
grow quite rapidly, enlarging the web as they develop. 
The full-grown larvae are a little more than an inch 
long (a), with the body densely clothed with yellowish 



Shade Trees 



107 



hairs. 






Fig. 



30. Fall Web-worm 
, moth. 



a, larva ; b, pupa 



They now leave their nests and descend to the 

ground, where 
they spin slight 
silken cocoons 
withi n which 
they change to 
pupae. 

Remedies. — It 
is an easy mat- 
ter to cut the 
webs off and 
burn or crush the 
larvae. The pests may also be destroyed by spraying 
with London purple or Paris green when the larvae are 
young. 

During recent years the Imported Elm Leaf-beetle 
has been exceedingly destructive in many cities of the 
Eastern States, to that loveliest of shade-trees, the elm. 
The eggs (Plate IV., a) are laid on the under side of 
the leaf in two or three rows. In about a week the lar- 
vae hatch and begin eating the leaves, causing them to 
look as if riddled with fine shot. They become fully 
grown (g) in two or three weeks, when they descend 
to the ground, and change to pupae (/). Ten days 
later the perfect beetles (c, natural size ; /£, magnified) 
come forth and eat the leaves, although the damage 
done by the insect in this beetle state is much less than 
that done by the larvae. There are three or four broods 
each season, and the beetles pass the winter in hollow 
trees and under old leaves. 



108 Spraying Crops 

Remedies. — Spray with London purple or Paris 
green (4 ozs. to 50 gallons water) when the eggs are 
being laid, in order to kill the larvae before they have 
done any damage. The addition of a little flour to 
the poison mixture seems to render it more effective. 
To reach the tops of high trees a pump of considerable 
power is required 



THE ROSE 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The Rose Slug is the young or larva of a four- 
winged saw-fly. It eats the pulp of the leaves, giving 
the foliage a scorched appearance. The eggs are laid 
singly in the skin of the leaf, and the larvae hatch in 
about a fortnight. They become full-grown in three 
weeks : they have a small, round, yellowish head, and 
a green body, which is soft and nearly transparent. 
Leaving the bushes they burrow into the soil an inch 
or two and make oval cocoons of silk mixed with par- 
ticles of earth. They remain in these until the follow- 
ing season, when they emerge as flies. 

Remedies. — Spray with hellebore 
or insect powder. 

The Rose Leaf- 
hopper is a small 
whitish insect, found 
on the lower surface 
of rose leaves, suck- 
ing out the cell con- 
tents and giving the 
upper surface a 
white-spotted appear- 
ance. The adult (Fig 31, a) is a little more than 1-10 
inch long, with a yellowish-white body, and white semi- 




b a 

Fig. 31. Rose Leaf-hopper : a, adult; 
&, pupa. Magnified. 



no Spraying Crops 

transparent wing-covers. It % has long hind-legs, by- 
means of which it is enabled to make tremendous 
leaps when disturbed. 

Remedies. — These little pests are much easier to 
destroy before they are fully developed than after- 
wards. Spraying or dusting with pyrethrum, or insect- 
powder, is a simple and efficient remedy. Tobacco, in 
the form either of a powder or a decoction, is also 
good ; and kerosene emulsion will destroy the pests. 

Flowers and Potted Plants 

Greenhouse plants are often seriously injured by 
minute reddish mites that congregate on the lower 
leaf surface, spinning a fine protective web and suck- 
ing out the juices of the plants through their tiny 
beaks. These are Red Spiders. They multiply 
beneath their silken webs, where one may find colonies 
of individuals (so small as to be scarcely visible to the 
naked eye) in all stages of existence. The infested 
leaves assume a yellowish hue, and many of them 
finally fall off. ♦ 

Remedies. — The Red Spider flourishes best in a 
dry atmosphere. It is seldom troublesome in green- 
houses where the air is kept saturated with moisture 
and the plants are sprayed with water every day. In 
window-gardens the plants should be sprayed with soap- 
suds, tobacco decoction, or kerosene emulsion, or 
dusted with fine tobacco powder, as soon as they 
show signs of the presence of this pest. 

There are many different species of Aphides, Plant- 



The Rose 



in 



lice, or " Greenflies/' affecting various flowering- 
plants. But all are quite similar in life-history 
and habits, and the same remedies apply to each. 

They all multi- 
ply with mar- 
velous rapidity, 
on account of 
their habit of 
giving birth to 
living young 
without the 
presence of 
male aphides. 
They mature 
rapidly, and ob- 
tain food by inserting their pointed beaks into the 
stem or leaf and sucking out the sap. There are gen- 
erally two forms of them, one being winged (Fig. 32, 
b, c) and the other wingless (a). These insects are the 
commonest pests of flowering-plants. 

Remedies. — Spray with kerosene emulsion, fish-oil 
soap, or tobacco decoction. 




Fig. 32. Aphis : #, wingless form, magnified; 
b, winged form, magnified ; c, same, 
natural size. 



PART IV 



SPRAYING VEGETABLES, FIELD- 
CROPS, AND DOMESTIC ANIMALS 



THE POTATO 



Insect Enemies of the Foliage 

The Colorado Potato-beetle (Plate V) deposits 
its orange-colored eggs (a) in masses, varying in num- 
ber from a dozen to fifty or more, on the under surface 
of the potato leaf, and occasionally also upon the leaves 
of grass, smart-weed, or other plants in the potato field. 
They hatch about a week later into peculiar little grubs 
(l?) that feed upon the foliage a few weeks. They then 
descend to the ground, where just beneath the soil 
surface, or under the rubbish above it, they change to 
pupae (c). About ten days later they emerge as perfect 
beetles. There are from two to four annual broods, the 
number varying with the latitude ; and the insect hiber- 
nates in the beetle state. 

Remedies. — Spray with six or seven ounces of Lon- 
don purple or Paris green to 50 gallons of water. For 
this purpose London purple seems preferable, on ac- 
count of its cheapness and finely-powdered condition. 
The application should be made as soon as the beetles 
appear, in order to kill off the first brood, and it must 
be repeated as often during the season as is necessary 
to keep the pests in check. 



n6 Spraying Crops 

Fungous Enemies 

There are at least two distinct diseases which are 
called the Potato Rot or Potato Blight. One of 
these is the Old-fashioned Potato Rot or Potato 
Mildew, due to the fungus Phytophora infestans ; and 
the other is the Bacterial Potato Rot, a disease due 
to bacteria. They may usually be distinguished by the 
fact that leaves affected by the former have on their 
under surface a white, velvety mold, visible to the naked 
eye, but more readily seen through the microscope : 
with the bacterial blight no such mildew is present. 
With both the foliage of plants attacked becomes spot- 
ted with brown, and the spots gradually enlarge, finally 
involving the whole leaf, and then cause the stems to 
wilt and wither. 

According to Professor F. L. Scribner, the life-history 
of the Old-fashioned Potato Rot Fungus may be 
summarized as follows: "The spores lighting upon 
the leaves of the potato germinate in drops of dew or 
rain, and the product of germination — the zoospores — 
penetrate to the interior tissues of the plant, and after 
growing for a time through these tissues, the mycelium 
sends out, chiefly from the under surface of the leaves, 
slender fruiting branches, whereon are produced a new 
crop of spores. These may carry the disease to the 
other plants in the field, or to the other parts of the 
same plant; that is, they may serve to spread the dis- 
ease in the tops, which we term blight, over the entire 
field, or by being washed into the ground they may 



The Potato 117 

reach the tubers and cause the rot. The fungus once 
having gained entrance to the tubers, may or may not 
vegetate rapidly. Its presence, however, is soon made 
evident by a browning of the flesh underlying the skin, 
and by more or less extensive discoloration and de- 
pression of the latter." 

When such affected tubers are planted, the disease is 
almost certain to develop in the plants from them. 

Our acquaintance with the Bacterial Potato 
Blight is less complete than with the disease just de- 
scribed. But we know that the bacteria develop in all 
parts of the plant, and that they remain in the tubers 
over winter. This disease seems to be commonest in 
the West and South. 

In addition to these two maladies, there is a third dis- 
ease of potatoes, which has been called the Early 
Blight or Leaf-spot Disease. It appears rather early 
in the season, and may develop and spread slowly in 
dry, cool weather. It is possible that this and the bac- 
terial rot are two phases of the same disease. 

Remedies. — A number of experiments have shown 
that these diseases may be prevented by spraying with 
the Bordeaux mixture, provided the seed potatoes used 
are free from infection. To be sure of this, seed 
should be obtained from regions where blight and rot 
do not occur upon potatoes, or potatoes which were 
sprayed the year before. Then spray three or four 
times with the Bordeaux mixture, making the first ap- 
plication when the vines are about one third grown, or 
earlier if signs of the disease appear, and repeat the 



n8 



Spraying Crops 



application when it is washed off — in about a fortnight 
usually. Add half a pound of London purple or Paris 
green to each barrel of the mixture whenever the Col- 
orado Beetles threaten injury. While the best results 
are most likely to be reached when the seed is not in- 
fected, very satisfactory ones are obtained from spraying 
crops from ordinary seed. 

The beneficial effect of treatment with Bordeaux 
mixture, as it resulted in some experiments by Professor 
Jones, of Vermont, is shown in Figure 33. The 





>-«<•' 



Fig. 23- ( a ) Yield of unsprayed plot ; (b) of sprayed plot. 

treated vines yielded marketable tubers at the rate of 
291 bushels per acre, while those untreated yielded 
only at the rate of 99^ bushels per acre. 



THE CABBAGE 



Insect Enemies of the Leaves 

The transformations of the Imported Cabbage- 
Worm — the most destructive insect affecting cab- 
bage — are illustrated in Fig. 34. The adult is a com- 
mon white butterfly, which deposits, singly or in 
clusters of two or three each, small, yellowish eggs 




Fig. 34. Imported Cabbage-worm : a, larva ; b, chrysalis ; 
c, female butterfly; 

upon the cabbage. The eggs soon hatch into little, 
green larvae that feed upon the leaves. In about two 
weeks they become full-grown (a), when they desert 
the cabbage plants, and finding some suitable shelter 
— beneath a board or under the coping of a fence— 



120 Spraying Crops 

change to chrysalids (b). They remain in this condi- 
tion about ten days, when they emerge as butterflies, 
to lay eggs for another brood of worms. The winter is 
passed in the chrysalis state. 

Remedies. — Pyrethrum (insect-powder or buhach), 
hot water, and kerosene emulsion are the best reme- 
dies. The insect powder may be mixed with water, in 
the proportion of one ounce to four or five gallons of 
water, and sprayed upon the plants. Dr. Riley states 
that " every worm visible upon the cabbages may be 
killed by the use of hot water at the temperature of 
130 Fahrenheit. The water may be boiling hot when 
put in the watering-can, but it will not be too hot 
when it reaches the cabbage leaves." Kerosene 
emulsion can advantageously be used when the plants 
are young, though there would appear to be danger of 
tainting the heads if applied to the fully developed 
plants. Whichever method of treatment is adopted, it 
should be carried into practice at frequent intervals, 
thus keeping the worms well in check. If the plants 
are sprayed with insect-powder once a week during the 
time the worms are present, they wilt cause little or no 
trouble. Young cabbages which have not begun to 
form heads may be sprayed with Paris green or Lon- 
don purple and water, but this should not be done 
under any circumstances after the heads are formed. 

There are several other caterpillars affecting cab- 
bage — especially the Cabbage Plusia and the Zebra 
Caterpillar — which sometimes necessitate a spray- 
ing with kerosene emulsion or insect-powder. 



The Cabbage 121 

The Cabbage Aphis is a small, greenish insect, 
generally covered with a whitish, mealy coating, that 
occurs in great numbers on the leaves and in the 
heads of cabbage. During the summer months it re- 
produces viviparously, but in autumn true males and 
females are developed, eggs being deposited by the 
latter upon the cabbage leaves. 

Remedy. — Kerosene emulsion and fish-oil soap are 
the most effective liquid insecticides that can be used 
against this insect. 

Young cabbages are often attacked by flea-beetles, 
especially the Wavy-striped Flea-beetle. It is a 
small, shining black beetle, 1-10 inch long, with a 
broad, yellow, wavy stripe on each wing-cover. It 
feeds upon the surface of the leaf, gnawing out little 
pits. The females deposit minute whitish eggs upon 
the roots of cruciferous plants, such as radish, cabbage, 
turnip, etc., and the larvae feed upon these roots, 
sometimes doing serious damage. The full-grown 
larva (a) is about % inch long, with a yellowish-white 
body, and brown head. 

Remedies. — Spray the plants with a strong tobacco 
decoction, or dust on powdered tobacco. 

In the southern states the Harlequin Cabbage- 
bug is a very troublesome pest. It feeds upon a 
variety of cruciferous plants, such as cabbage, radish, 
mustard, and turnip ; and passes the winter in the 
adult state. Early in spring eggs are deposited upon 
mustard or radish plants, upon which the resulting 
bugs develop. The second brood attacks the cabbage 



122 



Spraying Crops 




and the insects continue to develop upon this crop 

until autumn. Ac- 
cording to Mr. 
Howard Evarts 
Weed of the Miss- 
issippi Experiment 
station, " there is 
but one efficient 
remedy for this 
insect, which is, to 
destroy the brood 

^5. Harlequin Cabbage-bug ; a, />, 

nymphs ; c, eggs ;/, adult ; g, adult with which lives Over 

wings extended — all natural size ; d, eggs • , , j 

side view ; e, eggs, view from above, — d, e, Winter, wnen tliey 

enlarged. congregate upon 

the mustard or radish plants. Here they can be de- 
stroyed very easily by the application of kerosene [not 
emulsified] by means of a hand force-pump or common 
watering bucket. If the insects are thus destroyed early 
in the season, it will' almost wholly prevent injury later. 
The insects fly but little, and are thus not apt to come 
from a neighboring field.''' Those bugs or eggs which 
may be seen on cabbage, should be picked off and 
destroyed. 



GRAIN CROPS 



Insect Enemies 

The Chinch Bug has long been recognized as one 
of the arch-enemies of American agriculture. The 
adult (Fig. K) is a small blackish insect, slightly less 
than 1-5 inch long, with the legs dark yellow, and their 
tips black. The females deposit eggs about the roots 
of grass and grain. From these hatch young bugs (c) 




Fig. 36. Chinch Bug : a, b, eggs ; c, e, /, young; g, nymph or pupa ; 
/i, adult. Magnified. 

that do not differ in general form from the adults. 
They suck the sap from various plants of the grass 
family, gradually increasing in size, and moulting at 
intervals. In a few weeks they become nearly full- 
grown, but instead of changing to a quiet chrysalis 



124 



Spraying Crops 



state, they simply moult again and continue feeding as 
before. In these early stages, which correspond to the 
larva and chrysalis, they are called nymphs. The older 
nymphs (g) are nearly as large as the full-grown bugs, 
differing mainly in the absence of wings. In about a 
week they again moult and come forth as adult bugs. 

Remedies. — Chinch bugs are easily killed by 
kerosene emulsion, and by means of improved spray- 
ing-machines this substance can be used against them 
to good advantage. The best time to choose in which 
to kill them is when they are migrating from field to 
field. 

Corn, oats, and other 
field and garden crops 
suffer greatly from the 
attacks of Cut-worms> 
of which there are many 
species. They are larvae 
of medium-sized, night- 
flying moths, and are 
thick, naked worms 
that curl up when 
disturbed. Most of them 
feed upon grass or clover 
when young, becoming 
about half grown by winter time, when they seek the 
shelter of some log or stone, or burrow into the soil. 
Here they hibernate, and in spring come forth in 
search of food. They now attack a variety of young 
plants, biting off the stems and feeding upon the 







Fig. 37 . 



Variegated Cut-worm : a, 
&, moth. 



larva 



Grain Crops 125 

leaves. They become full-grown in spring or early 
summer, and pupate beneath the soil surface, and 
three or four weeks later emerge as moths. The larva 
(a) and moth (b) of the Variegated Cut-worm (Agrotis 
saucid) are represented, natural size, in Fig. 37. Some 
species have two or more broods each season, while 
others have but one. Cut-worms are especially likely 
to do damage in fields and gardens close to grass-lands, 

and to crops immedi- 
ately following grass. 
Remedies. — One of 
the best ways to destroy 
these pests in field 
practice is to spray a 
small plat of clover and 

Fig. 38. Army-worm moth. then cut it late in the 

afternoon and strew in bunches over the field to be 
protected. The worms prowling about at night eat of 
the poisonous baits and are killed. 

The Army-worm hatches from eggs laid by a hand- 
some brown moth (Fig. 38) between the sheaths of 
grass blades. The larvae are at first green, but later 
become ornamented with longitudinal stripes of yellow, 
gray, and black (b). They feed upon the leaves of 
grass, wheat, oats, rye, etc., and become full-grown in 
about a month. Ordinarily they remain concealed 
about the bases of grass or grain, feeding there un- 
noticed, but occasionally become so numerous that 
they exhaust their food-supplies, and then are forced 
to seek other feeding-grounds. At such times the 




126 Spraying Crops 

" armies " appear, and moving in solid masses sweep 
all grasses and cereals before them. The full-grown 
larvae enter the ground and pupate in earthern cells, 
emerging a fortnight later as moths. 

Remedies. — One of the most promising methods of 
combating this insect is that of thoroughly spraying- 
strips of grass or other crops in front of the advancing 
host with mixtures of London purple and water. 



DOMESTIC ANIMALS 



Insect Enemies 

Our various domestic animals frequently suffer from 
the attacks of Lice. Three of the commoner species 
affecting horses and cattle are shown in Fig. 39. Ani- 
mals infested by them lose flesh and are weakened. 
The lice generally deposit their eggs or "nits" on the 
hairs. 

Remedy. — T he best 
method of destroying lice 
is to spray or wash the 
infested animals with a 
weli-prepared kerosene 
emulsion. If this is well 
made it can be applied to 
cattle and horses, hogs and sheep, with no danger of 
injury to them, while it will destroy all the lice with 
which it comes in contact. Professor C. P. Gillette, 
who first gave this method a thorough trial, recommends 
applying it with a force-pump and spray nozzle, rub- 
bing it in thoroughly with the finger-tips at the same 
time. It kills the lice, and leaves the hair of the 
animal in good condition. The lice may also be 
destroyed by treating with a strong tobacco decoction 
— a pound of tobacco being boiled in two gallons of 




a c 

Fig. 39. Lice: a, b, sucking ox-lice; 
c, biting horse-louse. Magnified. 



128 



Spraying Crops 



water — or a wash of carbolic-acid soap. But the first- 
named remedy is best. The stalls and woodwork of 
the quarters occupied by the infested animals should 
also be treated. 

The Horn Fly is a recently imported insect that 
often annoys cattle by sucking their blood and lighting 
upon their horns (Fig. 31). The eggs are deposited 




Fig. 40 a, Horn Fly. magnified ; b, cow-horn with band of 
resting flies, reduced. 

in freshly dropped cow-dung, in which the larvae 
develop, and pupate in the soil beneath. There are 
four or five broods each season. During hot weather 
the transformations of the insect — from egg to imago — 
may be completed within two weeks. 

Remedies. — Spray cattle twice a week, either with 
kerosene emulsion, to which a little tobacco decoction 
has been added, or fish-oil to which a little carbolic 
acid has been added. Or rub on by means of a brush 
or cloth. 



INDEX 



Page 

Aphides no 

Apple, The 53 

curculio 55 

flea-beetle .... 58 

leaf-roller .... 95 

scab 60 

skeletonizer ... 97 

worm 54 

Army- worm 125 

Arsenites and copper car- 
bonate 31 

Bacterial potato-rot . . 117 

Bag-worm 104 

Basket-worm .... 104 

Black-spot 60 

peach aphis ... 66 

rot 91 

Bordeaux mixture ... 24 

and arsenites ... 31 
Brown-rot of stone-fruits 

. ..... 63,67,73 

grapes .... 15,92 

Bud-moth 59 

Cabbage, The . . . . 119 

aphis . . . . . . 121 

plusia 120 

worm 119 

Canker-worm ... 13, 56 

Carbonate of copper . . 27 

Cherry, The 72 

aphis 72 

Chester sprayer, The . 36 

Chinch-bug . . . . . 123 
Codling-moth . . 10, 54, 68 

Colorado potato-beetle . 115 
Combining insecticides 

and fungicides ... 30 

Copper carbonate ... 27 

sulphate 28 



Page 
Cost of spraying-mate- 
rials 32 

Currant, The .... 84 

aphis 87 

bug 86 

leaf-hopper .... 85 

worm 84 

Cut-worms 124 

Development of parasitic 

fungi 15 

Domestic animals . . . 127 
Downy mildew of grapes 15 ,92 

potato 98 

Eau celeste 27 

modified 27 

Elm leaf-beetle .... 107 

Eye-spotted bud-moth . . 59 

Fall canker-worm ... 56 

web-worm .... 106 

Feeding-habits of insects 14 

Fungi, parasitic . . . . 15 

Fungicides 18 

used in spraying . . 24 

Galloway's mixture . . 28 

sprayer 35 

Gooseberry, The. ... 84 

mildew ..... 87 

Grain-crops 103 

Grape, The 89 

flea-beetle .... 89 

Harlequin cabbage-bug . 121 

Hellebore 20 

Horn-fly 128 

Hyposulphite of soda . 29 

Imported cabbage- worm . 119 

Insecticides 18 

Insect-powder .... 20 

Insects, t feeding-habits of 14 

spraying against . . 10 



130 



Index 



Page 

Kerosene emulsion . . 20 

Leaf-crumpler .... 96 

skeletonizer ... 97 

Lice 127 

Lichens ji 

Lime-spray 23 

and London purple . 20 

Liver of sulphur ... 29 

London purple .... 19 

and lime 20 

Lye solution 29 

Maple bark-louse . . . 103 

Modified eau celeste . . 27 

Mycelium 16 

Nursery stock .... 95 

Oyster-shell bark-louse . 53 

Orange 74 

Parasitic fungi, develop- 
ment of 15 

Paris green 19 

Peach 66 

aphis 66 

rot 67 

Pear, The 68 

slug . . . . . 68,73 
leaf-blight . . . 69,98 

Pear psylla 69 

Philosophy of spraying . 18 

Plum, The 62 

curculio 12, 55, 62, 66, 68, 72 

gouger 62 

leaf-spot .... 63, 98 

rot 61, 

Potassium sulphide . . 29 

Potato, The 1 r 5 

beetle 115 

rot t 16 

Powdery mildew ... 98 
Precautions in spraying . 49 
Prejudice against spray- 
ing 33 

Pruning trees .... 45 

Pyrethrum 20 

Pyrethro-kerosene emul- 
sion 40 

Quince, The ..... 71 





Page 


Raspberry, The . . . . 


93 


anthracnose . . . 


93 


cane-rust . . . . 


93 


slug 


93 


Red-legged flea-beetle 


66 


Red-spider . .... . 


no 


Resin washes . . . . 


7 4 


Rose beetle 


8q 


chafer 


89 


leaf-hopper . . . . 


109 


slug 


109 


Shot-hole fungus . . 


63, 73 


Soda hyposulphite . . . 


29 


Sprayer, The Chester . 


36 


Galloway . . . 


35 


Spraying against insects 


10 


and the weather . 


44 


apparatus . . . 


35 


cost of .... 


40 


calendar ..." 


46 


materials, cost of . 


3 2 


nozzles .... 


• 39 


philosophy of . . 


18 


precautions . . . 


. 49 


prejudice against . 


■ 33 


profits of ... 


43 


trees in blossom . 


• 45 


Spring canker-worm . 


. S6 


Strawberry, The . . 


• 79 


leaf-blight . . . 


. 82 


leaf-beetles . . . 


. 81 


leaf-roller . . . 


. 80 


root-worms . . . 


. 81 


slug 


■ 79 


Sulphate of copper 


. 28 


Tent caterpillar . . . 


• 57 


Tobacco decoction . . 


• 2 3 


Variegated cut-worm . 


. 124 


Wavy-striped flea-beetle 


. 121 


Whale-oil soap . . . 


. 24 


White-marked tussock 




moth 


. 105 


Woolly aphis . . . 


• 54 


bark-louse . . . 


. 103 


Zebra caterpillar . . 


. 120 






ADVERTISEMENTS 



At the present time every gardener, farmer, and fruit-grower 
should own a sprayi7ig-machine of so??ie kind. — B. T. Galloway. 



\9 



OUR SPRAYING OUTFITS >RE CHEAPEST 

AUD BEST. 

THE PEEFECTION OUTFIT 

Stirs the liquid automatically, and will SPRAY 100 trees per hour. 
Has ten feet of discharge hose, and a graduating spray nozzle, and 
suet on-pipe ready to mount on a barrel. Can be fitted with brass 
cylinder, plunger, and rod when so ordered. 



Do n't buy an inferior machine 
when you can get a Perfection 
for less money. 

Price, Iron, $9.50. 

Brass-working Parts, 
$12.00. 

We also manufacture the 

Victor improved 
Horse-Power 




Spraying-Machine. 

It is especially adapted for 
spraying Vineyards and Or- 
chards. 



Our Machines are guaranteed first-class in every 

respect. 

FIELD FORCE PUMP COMPANY, 

Lockport, New York. 

Write for Circulars. 



The Garfield Knapsack Sprayer, 



FOR 



Vineyards, Nurseries, Fruit Orchards, 
and Potato Fields. 



The only Knapsack that is concaved to fit the 

back. 

This machine consists of a copper tank holding five gallons. The 
pump is made entirely of brass and copper, and cannot corrode or 
rust. There is a large air-chamber placed inside the tank for con- 
venience, which has sufficient capacity to keep up the pressure and 
continue to discharge the spray for nearly one minute after the 
operator stops pumping. The tank, having rounded ends, is stronger 
and less liable to leak. It has handles for lifting, thus adding 

0. greatly to the convenience of 
il " loading " upon the back. There 
is a large opening on top for the 
reception of liquid, with a fine 
strainer set inside. A brass pipe, 
fifteen inches long, with a stop- 
cock, is furnished with each ma- 
chine. The nozzle is our combi- 
nation Vermorel, so highly rec- 
ommended by Prof. Riley, and 
gives universal satisfaction. The 
Vermorel attachment throws a 
fine misty vapor spray, but on 
account of its fineness cannot be 
thrown more than fifteen feet. 
More force applied only serves 
to make the spray finer; but by 
means of the combination, the 
Vermorel attachment can be un- 
screwed, leaving a solid- stream 
nozzle, which will throw to a dis- 
tance of 40 or 50 feet. Weight, 
empty, 14 lbs.; full, 60 lbs. 

Frioe, $12.00. 

MANUFACTURED BY 

FIELD FOKCE PUMP COMPANY, 

LOCKPORT, NEW YORK. 




Spraying Outfits 



Orchard and Vine- 
vard Cart [Geared). 




Field and Orchard 
Machine (Geared). 



THE H.1X0N \6ZZLE AND MACHINE CO., 

DAYTON, O., U. S. A., 

Manufacture every description of Spraying Implements. 
Send for Price-List and Illustrated Catalogue. 



Spraying 
Outfits. 



Climax 
Tripod Pump, 





Same pump fastened on 
Head of Barrel, with 
Automatic Agitator 
Attached. 

MANUFACTURED BY 

Nixon Nozzle and 
Machine Co., 

Dayton, Ohio, U. S. A. 



London Purple 



Has been used for a period exceeding fifteen years by 
farmers, fruit-growers, and all sorts of people for de- 
stroying insect pests. 

Applied as a spray, 4 oz. to a barrel of water (to 
which a small quantity of lime should be added), it 
protects the tree against caterpillars and all leaf-eating 
insects, bringing it to that point of hardiness and 
healthiness which allows of the largest yield of the 
finest fruit. 



LONDON PUEPLE 



Can be obtained generally throughout the country, or 
direct from the manufacturers. 



HEMIfWAY'S L0pt( PURPLE CO., 

(Limited.) 

NKW YORK. 



/YTfTTnTTTTTTTTTTmTYTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTnTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTnTTlrTTTTTTTTYnTTTTfTTl 

Do Your Grapes Rot? 

Pears blight, crack or spot? Are your Apples, PlumS; 
and Cherries imperfect? Powell's 

COPPERDINE 

Is a sure preventive. It is guaranteed to stop all Fungus 
Diseases ; prevents Rust on Carnations and Black Spots 
on Roses. 




For sale by all Seedsmen, 50c. a quart, §1.50 per gallon. Used largely diluted. 
Special prices in large quantities to Florists and Nurserymen. 

Send for circular. Powell's Mildew Mixture prevents 
Mildew on Flowers and Fruits, and Bust on Oats, 

W. S. POWELL & CO., Baltimore, Md.,U.S.A, 

iuumiiiiiiummi^^^ 



^*£U'scbpp»Mtf 





Bugs and Insects 

consume and injure Vegetables, Flowers and general crops every year to th4 
extent of 85,000,000 in the United States alone. 

POWELL'S QUASSAINE 




A clean liquid N QN - PO I SO NOUS 

Lice and Flies on Stock, 



INSECTICIDE- kills Ros« 
Bugs, Aphis, Hop Lice, Lice and Flies on Stock, Melon Bugs, Beau Bugs* 
Scale Insects and nearly all other Bugs and Insects. 
For Sale toy all Seedsmen. Qts. 50c; gallon £1.50. Used 
largely diluted. POWELL'S GUICIDE POWDER kills Potato 
Bugs, Codling Moths, <fcc, and prevents Potato Rot and Blight. If 
you are troubled by any kind of Bugs, Insects or Fungus Disease, 
"write us, and we will suggest a remedy for your trouble. 

W. S. POWELL & CO., BALTIMORE, MD..U. S. A. 




THE AQUAPULT SPRAYING-PUMP 



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A PORTABLE 

HAND 
FORCE PUMP. 




Discharges a 

continuous stream 

and will throw 

about eight gal- 

ons per minute. 

Its various uses 
are obvious. 

Recommended 

by agriculturists 

as the best spray- 

ing-pump for 

Paris green 

and London 

purple. 

This is intended for same purposes as our Aquarius, and meets a 
demand of some of our customers who require a Pump that stands 
directly in the water, while the step, coming to the level of the 
ground, enables it to be easily held in position while being operated. 

PRICE, complete, with 3-foot discharge-hose, pipe and sprink- 
ler, $5 each. 



For sale by all Agricultural and Hardware stores. 
W. & B, DOUGLAS, MIDDLETOWN, CONN, 



Perfection Knapsack Spraying-Machine. 



Made in accordance with 
directions of Prof. B. T. Gal- 
loway. Tank of either cop- 
per or galvanized iron. Dis- 
charge through hose and 
iron pipe, with stop-cock 
regulator, tipped with the 
Pilter-Bourdil or Vermorel 
nozzle. 



Pump can be removed for 
repairs without disturbing 
tank. 




For sulphate of copper and 
lime, copper tank is neces- 
sary; for Paris green and 
London purple, galvanized 
iron will do. 



Price, complete as shown in cut, with Copper 
Tank, $14; with Galvanized Tank, $12. 

W. & B. DOUGLAS, Middletown, Conn 




SPRAYING PUMPS and NOZZLES, 

KNAPSACK SPRAYERS, ETC. 






&3T" We make the most complete and best line of Spray 
Pumps and Appliances in the United States, including the 
"Deming," "Ideal," "Success," "Gem," and "Peerless" 
Spray Pumps; "Bordeaux," "Deming," and "Vermorel" 
Nozzles; " Perfected Galloway " Knapsack Sprayer; Bucket 
Pumps for Greenhouse and Garden; Barrel Watering Carts, 
with or without Spray Pump attached ; Spray Pipe Exten- 
sions, Pole Connections, etc. 

S^ 3 Our Pumps and Nozzles are endorsed by agricultural 
experiment stations. Awards for highest merit received at 
World's Fair. 

S®^ Spray your Fruit Trees and Grape Vines; Increase 
the Harvest, and Make Money. 

Send for Catalogue and Price List of Spray Pumps, Noz- 
zles, Etc. Address the manufacturers. 

THE DEMING COMPANY, 
Salem, Ohio. 
Or HENION & HUBBELL, 
(Western Agents) 
Chicago, 111. 




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